Even wine lovers often have moments of confusion when it comes to Italian wines. Not only because of its difficult labels, but also because of its many varieties and regions, it is really impossible to get familiar with it for a while.
However, there is such a variety, once you get to know it, you have laid down half of the Italian wine industry.
It is arguably the source of many of Italy's top wines, and it is the most widely cultivated variety in Italy.
The name Sangiovese means Sangue di Gieve in Italian, which gives it a bit of mystery. Popular legend has it that Sangiovese has a long history, even said to date back to the Etruscan period (probably more than 2,000 years ago).
Don't take their word for it, in fact, before 1700, Italians almost never heard of the name Sangiovese, and the popular varieties at that time were mainly Trebbiano and Malvasia.
It was found that Sangiovese's parents were two Tuscan cherry grapes, Ciliegiolo and Calabrese Montenuovo, and that the earliest written record of Ciliegiolo was in 1590, far from the Etruscan period.
By the 18th century, it was discovered that wines made with 100% sangiovese tasted very sour and rough, but this roughness was neutralized when blended with other varieties, such as Canaiolo, Colorino, Malvasia or Trebbiano, which is our modern Chianti and Vino Nobile Di Predecessor of Montepulciano.
In the 70s, small oak barrels were used to soften the rough texture of the sangiovese, which is also a common solution in modern times.
The Italians are more curious and like to make wine from local native grapes, and they have about 2,000 varieties of native varieties, of which about 400 are commonly used to make wine. But in the 90s, almost 10% of Italy's vineyards were planted with sangiovese.
Excellent sangiovese with high acidity and firm tannins, balanced in nature. Typical flavours include tart cherry, stone fruit, tea, dried herbs and earthy aromas. It has thin skins, so it is prone to mold in cool, wet years. It is also a light-coloured variety, and we often see wines made with Sangiovese developing towards brown at a young age.
But it has a decent ability to age, although most of the sangiovese are only made to be drunk early rather than aged. The most ageable are the Super Tuscan and Brunello di Montalcino, which can be aged for 5 to 10 years, or around 20 years in the best vintages.
Sangiovese includes all varieties and is a late-maturing variety that matures very slowly. Traditionally, the harvest takes place after September 29 each year, but there are now wineries that don't harvest until mid-October. As a result, in hot years, Sangiovese is relatively more abundant and powerful than other early-ripening grape varieties, with greater ageing potential.
Sangiovese is a variety that adapts to the soil and can change some of its characteristics depending on environmental changes, so we will see different varieties all over Italy. Overall, though, limestone should be the most suitable soil for Sangiovese, as it brings out the elegant and powerful aromatic properties of Sangiovese.
There are at least 14 variants of Sangiovese, all of which exist under different names:
Brunello, Prugnolo Gentile, Morellino, Nielluccio, Sangioveto, Sangiovese Grosso, Sangiovese Piccolo, etc.
Among them, Brunello is considered one of the best variants. However, despite the many varieties, Sangiovese is still the main variety of fine wines produced in Tuscany.
DNA testing also suggests that Sangiovese is likely the sire of a number of southern breeds, including Frapato, Gaglioppo, Nerello Mascalese and Perricone, among others.
Not only are there many varieties, but there are also many regions where Sangiovese is used to make wine, mainly in central Italy, such as Tuscany, Umbria, Marche, Lazio, and even Lombardy and Valpolicella in the north, and Campania in the south. Sangiovese can be seen in Sicilia.