Grape variety
Sangiovese
Sangiovese, Italy’s most planted red grape: Chianti, Brunello and Vino Nobile, its parentage, character, regions and what to eat with it.
- Colour
- Red
- Parentage
- Natural cross of Ciliegiolo and Calabrese di Montenuovo (DNA study, 2007)
- Main regions
- Tuscany (Chianti Classico, Montalcino, Montepulciano, Maremma), Romagna, Umbria, Marche, Corsica
- Typical aromas
- Sour cherry, red plum, violet, dried herbs, tea leaf, earth
- Classic pairing
- Pasta with ragù, bistecca alla fiorentina, pizza, pecorino
- Synonyms
- Brunello (Montalcino), Prugnolo Gentile (Montepulciano), Morellino (Scansano), Nielluccio (Corsica)
Sangiovese is Italy’s most planted red grape, with more than 50,000 hectares, and the basis of Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Its name is usually traced to the Latin sanguis Jovis, the blood of Jupiter; the first likely written mention dates from the late 16th century. The genetics are clearer than the etymology: a DNA study led by José Vouillamoz showed in 2007 that Sangiovese is a natural cross between Ciliegiolo, an old Tuscan variety, and Calabrese di Montenuovo, a rare variety from Campania. Where the cross happened, nobody knows.
Sangiovese is not one uniform grape but a family of many clones. The berries have thin skins that rot easily in a wet October, and the vine is vigorous, so yields must be held back. The wine is usually not deeply coloured, with high acidity and medium to firm tannins; typical are sour cherry, red plum, violet, dried herbs, tea leaf and earth. Depending on site and ageing, the style runs from fresh and fruity to dense and long-lived.
The great names differ mainly in their rules. Chianti Classico must contain at least 80 per cent Sangiovese and, since 2006, only red grapes are allowed for the rest; the Annata ages at least 12 months, the Riserva 24, the Gran Selezione (since 2014, only from the estate’s own vineyards) 30. In Montalcino the grape is called Brunello, and Brunello di Montalcino is 100 per cent Sangiovese: at least two years in wood and four months in bottle, sold no earlier than 1 January of the fifth year after the harvest, the Riserva a year later. Rosso di Montalcino is the younger, cheaper version from the same hills. Vino Nobile di Montepulciano requires at least 70 per cent Sangiovese, called Prugnolo Gentile there, and Morellino di Scansano, in the Maremma, at least 85 per cent. Outside Tuscany the grape grows in Romagna, Umbria and the Marche, in Corsica as Nielluccio and in Argentina.
Sangiovese is a wine for meals: its acidity and tannins ask for tomato, fat and protein. A simple Chianti suits pasta with ragù, pizza and cured meats, a mature Brunello bistecca alla fiorentina, game and aged pecorino, preferably decanted and served at 16 to 18 degrees.