"Chianti" covers two things at once: a broad Tuscan DOCG stretching from north of Florence to south of Siena, and Chianti Classico, the smaller historic heartland between the two cities that earned its own DOCG and the Gallo Nero (black rooster) seal in 1996. Both run on Sangiovese, but the wine in your glass depends heavily on which one you're holding.
Sangiovese, mostly
Chianti Classico requires at least 80 percent Sangiovese, and increasingly producers push toward 100, using Canaiolo and other native varieties rather than the international grapes once permitted. Antinori, one of the zone's oldest producers, works estates across several of Classico's subzones, from cooler Radda to warmer Castelnuovo Berardenga, and the resulting wines show how much the same grape shifts with altitude and soil. Riserva needs two years' ageing; Gran Selezione, the newest and strictest tier, needs thirty months and only estate-grown fruit.
Beyond Classico
Plain Chianti DOCG, grown across a much wider area, tends toward lighter, earlier-drinking wine built for the table rather than the cellar, though pockets like Rufina in the cooler hills northeast of Florence make something more structured. It is also where Chianti's reputation for honest, food-friendly value lives, a useful contrast to the ambition, and price, of top Classico. For Sangiovese pushed to its most serious extreme, Brunello di Montalcino is the same grape a hundred kilometres south.
FAQ
What's the difference between Chianti and Chianti Classico?
Chianti Classico comes from the original, smaller zone between Florence and Siena and carries the Gallo Nero seal. Plain Chianti covers a wider area with its own, generally lighter, house style.
What does Riserva mean here?
A minimum of two years' ageing before release, with at least three months in bottle. It signals a more serious, longer-lived wine than basic Annata Chianti.
Can Chianti age?
Good Classico, especially Riserva and Gran Selezione, easily holds ten to fifteen years. Everyday Chianti is built to drink within a few years of release.