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This week, we revive the Grape Miniseries from podcasts of old to bring you: Sangiovese! The star of Central Italy that does amazing things when taken care of.\\xa0

Here are the notes:

History of Sangiovese

• Spotty history -- probably has existed a long time but wasn\'t mentioned until the 1500s.
• The name likely comes from the monks in Santarcangelo di Romagna at foot of Monte Giove, who chose the name of sanguis Jovis when forced to call wine by name other than vino. It could have also come from the\\xa0ancient language of Etruscans, who used similar to words for an offer to the gods

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Grape origins

• Probably from Sicily and Calabria \\u2013 in 16th century there were grape exchanges between northern and southern Italian regions
• A cross of two reds: Ciliegiolo and Calabrese di Montenuovo

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Climate, land, soil

• Needs warmth to ripen, but not too much
• Ripens better in Montalcino than Chianti \\u2013 nights are warmer, less rainfall in Montalcino
• Chianti \\u2013 \\xa0only 10% of the land good for cineyards
• Maremma \\u2013 rich, broad, hot with short growing season. High alcohol, low aroma
• Autralia \\u2013 Canberra in NSW, other warm areas show promise
• California \\u2013 more intense sunlight, different character
• Soils \\u2013Tuscan soil is varied. The best for Sangiovese is galestro and albarese
  
  • Soils are a challenge for New World Sangiovese winemakers

Winemaking

• Important to get ripeness in the vineyard
• Traditional aging in large casks of Slavonian oak or Chestnut
• Modern styles use small French oak barriques
• Sangiovese is often blended \\u2013 Canaille Nero, Coloring, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah are popular partners
  • Sangio needs extra color, richness \\u2013 low in acylated anthocyanins means light color

Sangiovese Flavors

• Light juicy wine or huge complex ones or harsh
• Traditional wines: cherries, violets, tomatoe, herbs, tea-like notes, high acid, high tannin, not fruity
• International wines: vanilla, spice, oak, dark fruit, higher alcohol

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Return of the Clones:\\xa0

• Clones \\u2013 color, flavor, concentration of fruity, 102 clones of Sangiovese
• 1988 \\u2013 Chianti Classico Conzorzio with Universities of Pisa and Florence\\u2013 launched Chianti Classsico 2000 project to improved quality

Found in:

• Italy: Tuscany, Emilia-Romagna, Lazio, Marche, Puglia, Sicily, Umbria
• US: Napa, Sonoma, Santa Barbara. Washington State, New Mexico
• Other North America: Mexico, Ontario, BC
• Australia \\u2013 growing
• Other New World: NZ, South Africa, Chile, Argentina, Brazil etc

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The difference in Tuscan wines using Sangiovese:

• Maremma: dark black fruit, herbal
• Chianti Classico \\u2013 cooler \\u2013 sour cherry, red berry, violet, tea leaf
• Brunello di Montalcino \\u2013 100% Sangiovese,\\xa0different depending on where it\'s grown in the appellation
• Vino Nobile di Montepulciano \\u2013 \\xa0earthy, rich, lovely
• Emilia-Romagna \\u2013 dark, dense, richer than Tuscan versions
• Marche \\u2013 Rosso Piceno, Rosso Conero \\u2013 usually blended with Montepulciano \\u2013 can be gloppy
• Umbria -- fuller, denser than Tuscan versions

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Thanks to our sponsors this week!\\xa0

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