Rare Wines. Chianti calls, Naples responds

It was the year 1928 when a vineyard was planted in Cerreto Guidi, halfway between Florence and Pisa. Among these rows, today, we find Sangiovese as the protagonist, together with canaiolo and colorino, but also plants of trebbiano and malvasia, historically the grapes that gave life to Chianti.

The first rare wine of this week is produced by Alberto and Alessandra Antonini who bring value to this parcel, on soils of marine origin, with lots of manual work, healthy viticulture and very low yields. The final result is Chianti Vigna del 1928 Riserva 2019, a quite fascinating red in its fine and articulate spicy echoes, with great gustatory rigor and balance.

We decided to put it up against an equally fascinating reserve, produced in the Campi Flegrei area in Campania, precisely within the city limits of Naples. Located on the Camaldoli hill, the highest of the Neapolitan city, the vineyard is located between 250 and 290 metres above sea level.

The lineage comes from the piedirosso, a grape with the dialectal name "per' e palummo", due to the pedicels of the red coloured grains just like those of a pigeon's foot. The Piedirosso Tenuta Camaldoli Riserva 2017 proposed by Cantine degli Astroni ferments in a cherrywood vat and ages in chestnut wood. It is an exquisitely Mediterranean red, tasty, multifaceted and unpredictable product: all the characteristics we look for in rare wines.

Rare Wines. Two great reds from Tuscany and Campania to discover.