The undiscovered Sangiovese
While Tuscany may provide the most evocative illustration of Sangiovese’s prowess, it turns out this talented grape has many other homes too. Richard Baudains finds distinctive alter egos and wallet-friendly prices as he explores beyond its heartland
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Dozen Sangiovese wines from further afield
Sangiovese is far and away Italy’s most planted variety. It accounts for a staggering 71,000 hectares of vineyard, equivalent to 11% of the national surface area. It was recently calculated that it is present, either as the principal or as a complementary grape, in no fewer than 243 DOC/Gs across the country. The best known of these are obviously Tuscan. Sangiovese is the grape of the region’s high-profile DOCGs (Chianti, Chianti Classico, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Brunello di Montalcino and Morellino di Scansano), of numerous monovarietal SuperTuscans, and of a whole raft of minor local denominations.
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Tuscany does not, however, have a monopoly on the cultivar in central Italy. Sangiovese is the principal red grape of Romagna and, a little-known and perhaps unexpected fact, it is also the most planted variety in the neighbouring regions of Umbria and Marche. Sangiovese-based wines from these regions do not get the media exposure of their Tuscan counterparts, but there are excellent reasons for seeking them out. Anyone with nostalgia for the aroma and the juicy vibrancy of young Sangiovese will find great examples in the neighbouring regions of a varietal style that Tuscany has largely forgotten.
On the other hand if you are looking for plush concentrated fruit in the SuperTuscan vein, or the high seriousness of an austere riserva, you will find those too. And because prices have not caught up with continually improving quality, you will also be getting super value for money. Having said that, however, it would be doing Tuscany’s neighbours a gross injustice to present them as simply the source of affordable lookalikes, because the Sangiovese wines of Romagna, Umbria and Marche have distinctive characters all of their own.
A dozen Sangiovese wines from further afield
Written by Richard Baudains
Richard Baudains was brought up on the formerly French-speaking island of Jersey (hence the French surname). He moved to Italy to teach, and his first article with Decanter was published in 1988. He has been writing about Italian wine ever since, currently with a monthly column on Decanter Premium. Judge and long-time regional chair at the Decanter World Wine Awards, Baudains is also on the editorial team of the Slow Wine Guide for Friuli Venezia Giulia, and has taught MA courses on Wine Journalism at the Università delle Scienze Gastronomiche. Baudains judges in wine competitions and leads tastings and educational seminars in various Italian regions. Outside of wine, he works as a Cambridge University English language examiner. He lives in Gorizia.