Fontodi’s Flaccianello della Pieve: Ten vintages compared

Michaela Morris sees how this 100% Sangiovese wine has evolved in style over 10 vintages...

Fontodi Factfile:

Date founded 1968

Hectares under vine 90ha

Total annual production 350,000 bottles

Annual production of Flaccianello 60,000 bottles

First vintage 1981

In the heart of Chianti Classico, near the town of Panzano, Fontodi’s south-facing vineyards are located in the renowned Conca d’Oro.

Giovanni Manetti took over his family’s property in 1979 and couldn’t have even been 20 when he produced the first vintage of Flaccianello, created with the help of oenologist Franco Bernabei, who still consults for Fontodi today. ‘Flaccianello and I grew up together,’ declares Manetti.

Scroll down to see Michaela’s tasting notes & scores for 10 vintages of Flaccianello

Flaccianello was conceived in 1981. At the time, Chianti regulations required a proportion of white grapes to be used, and prohibited 100% Sangiovese wines.‘To make the wine we wanted, we had to label it as table wine,’ says Manetti.

Today, Flaccianello is identified as IGT Colli della Toscana Centrale. Under Chianti Classico’s present current regulations, Flaccianello could technically be labelled as a Gran Selezione.

‘Perhaps when I can put Panzano on the label,’ maintains Manetti.

Source

Originally a single-vineyard bottling, in 2001 Flaccianello became a selection of the best grapes from the best parcels (with the exception of the Vigna del Sorbo vineyard).

It typically hails from Fontodi’s highest plots of Pecille, Il Poggio and La Cappellina, which reach an altitude of 500m, where ‘the intensity of light is stronger and the soil is leaner and stonier,’ according to Manetti.

Maturation

While Flaccianello has always been aged in French barriques, Manetti slowly increased the time in wood from 12 to 24 months and the percentage of new oak to 100%.

However, over the last five years he has started taking the wine out of the barriques earlier and finishing maturation in 25hl casks. The percentage of new wood has also decreased to 70-80%.

Flagbearers

Standing among an elite handful of wines, Flaccianello’s closest peers are Montevertine’s Le Pergole Torte, Isole e Olena’s Cepparello, Fèlsina’s Fontalloro and San Giusto a Rentennano’s Percarlo.

All originating from the same era, these are 100% Sangiovese wines from the hills of Chianti Classico that persist with an IGT designation.

Yet each in their own way, they are flagbearers of the zone’s diverse villages. Flaccianello holds up the Panzano banner. Polished without being too polite, it’s a complete wine that deftly allies elegance and power.

Manetti’s recent appointment as president of the Chianti Classico Consorz io seems to suggest that the denomination is getting closer to some sort of sub-zonation.

‘Identifying the village on the label would give greater value to the territory and wines of Chianti Classico,’ Manetti says. He assures me that a task force is currently working on a viability study, but the results remain to be seen.

The tasting

While he was busy with the 2018 harvest and his duties as president of the consorzio, a vertical of Flaccianello from 2001 to 2015 was arranged by Fontodi’s importer in Vancouver, Canada, which I hosted for a group of local sommeliers. The wines were all shipped directly from the estate.

Tasting the wines from oldest to youngest, the subtle tweaks in winemaking were perceived by the slightly lighter hand in the younger wines.

Even more palpable was the excellent study in vintage; Flaccianello is beautifully shaped to demonstrate their differences.

Depending on the vintage, this wine is best between 10-25 years’ old, while the outstanding 2006 could go three decades. I also loved the sheer grace of 2013.

Ten vintages of Flaccianello compared:

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