1969 Chianti Classico Riserva Il Poggio
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The 1969 Chianti Classico Riserva Il Poggio is a wild, exotic wine, just as it was last year. Sweet spice, rosewater, tobacco, apricot and kirsch show the intense perfume and sweetness of a vintage afflicted by strong botrytis. All that considered, the 1969 has held up beautifully, but it’s a vintage that needs to be drunk.
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Antonio Galloni, Vinous
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
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Castello di Monsanto’s 1969 Chianti Classico Riserva Il Poggio is fabulous right out of the gate. Then again, it is not exactly a young wine at this stage. Pipe tobacco, spice, worn-in leather and sweet dried cherry are the signatures of a wine that is fully mature, and yet bright acids keep things in gorgeous balance. I am struck by how much richness the 1969 Il Poggio still has. There is a hint of the sweetness often found in older wines, which Bianchi attributes to a slight presence of botrytis in the fruit. The 1969 is a blend of Sangiovese, Canaiaolo and Colorino made at a time when white grapes were mandatory in the blend for Chianti. Fabrizio Bianchi gave his 1969 three and half years in chestnut casks. The 1969 is an absolutely gorgeous wine that captures an early era in the modern history in what is today Chianti Classico.