Jancis Robinson’s new book, Wine Grapes, pg. 945
But an increasing number of producers who really care about local expression, or who have learned that Toscana’s distinction lies in carefully ripened Sangiovese, eschew non-Tuscan grapes and there has been a re-evaluation of Chianti Classico and particularly Riserva versions, and of top-quality all-Sangiovese wines in general, at the expense of those Supertuscans that depend on international varieties. Fine varietal Sangioveses from the Chianti zones include Fontodi’s Flaccianello, Montevertine’s pioneering Le Pergole Torte, Poggio Scalette’s Il Carbonaione, Isole e Olena’s Cepparello, La Porta di Vertine’s Chianti Classico Riserva, San Giusto a Rentennano’s Percarlo and Selvapiana’s Riserva Bucerchiale.
Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar Issue 164 Sept. 2012
2009 La Porta di Vertine Chianti Classico (90 pts.) Good full red. Musky, slightly reduced aromas of redcurrant, plum, black tea and iron. Bright, fleshy and smooth, with a restrained sweetness to the flavors of crunchy berries, spices and tea. Very distinctive wine, at once broad and weightless. Finishes smooth and long.
2009 La Porta di Vertine Riserva (90 + pts.) Bright red-ruby. Deep aromas of redcurrant, licorice and lead pencil. Starts off floral but turns rather sullen in the middle, hinting at mineral-driven flavors of red berries, dark cherry, licorice and underbrush. The smooth finish shows sneaky, subtle persistence.
2008 La Porta di Vertine Chianti Classico (90 pts.) Good full medium ruby-red. Herbal aromas of black fruits, licorice pastille and crushed rock. Less sweet and giving today than this producer’s 2009 wines, with tightly wound, pure flavors of crushed dark berries, licorice and forest floor. The finish features suppple tannins and displays a strong underbrush element.
2008 La Porta di Vertine Chianti Classico Riserva (89+ pts.) Good bright ruby-red. Cassis, red cherry and licorice on the nose, along with a whiff of mint. Sweet and dense on the palate, with dark berry flavors complemented by tobacco and mineral nuances. This big wine is rich but not heavy, finishing with substantial but even tannins and excellent persistence.
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate Issue 201 6-30-12
This is an intriguing set of wines from La Porta di Vertine. The estate follows a non-interventionalist approach in the cellar, with no sulfur added at crush, ambient yeasts and no temperature control. All of those choices give the wines more variability from year to year than readers might want, but there is no denying that at their best, these are compelling and highly individual wines that stand apart from the vast majority of wines being made today. The 2009 Chianti Classico is a fleshy, radiant wine. Sweet dark cherries, flowers, mint and spices caress the palate in this generous, expressive Chianti Classico. Hints of dried flowers and tobacco add lift on the juicy finish. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2019. The 2008 Chianti Classico emerges from the glass with dark, red cherries, flowers, mint and spices. It shows lovely energy and focus through to the finish. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2018. The 2009 Chianti Classico Riserva wraps around the palate with layers of expressive fruit. This is a softer style than firmer 2008. Hints of tobacco add complexity to the dark red cherries. The 2009 Riserva is an attractive, if somewhat rustic, wine… Anticipated maturity: 2012-2021. The 2008 Chianti Classico Riserva is a pretty wine laced with dark red cherries, flowers, mint and spices. Firm yet well-integrated tannins frame the long, beautifully delineated finish. I especially like the sense of energy in the 2008. This is a wine of true character. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2023. The 2009 Sassi Chiusi is a huge, dark wine bursting with black cherries, licorice, new leather tobacco and spices. It boasts tremendous intensity, power and richness in a full-bodied opulent style. Layers of fruit build to the sumptuous finish. The 2009 Sassi Chiusi is Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon aged in cask. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2024. The 2008 Sassi Chiusi (Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon) comes across as a bit clenched in this vintage. Blackberries, grilled herbs, crushed rocks and cassis are some of the notes that take shape in the glass. There is an intense, brooding minerality to the 2008 that is appealing. Ultimately, though the warmer 2009 vintage seems better suited to the personality of these international grapes. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2023
Chianti Classico 2009 – 89 pts. Chianti Classico 2008 – 90 pts. Chianti Classico Riserva 2009 – 89 pts. Chianti Classico Riserva 2008 – 92 pts. Sassi Chiusi 2009 – 92 pts. Sassi Chiusi 2008 – 90 pts.
Vinibuoni d’Italia 2012 L’unica guida ai vini da vitigni autoctoni con le migliori aziende selezionate in tutta Italia e in Istria
Riserva 2008 – Corona
2008 continues the trend of achieving the Corona also awarded to the versions 2006 and 2007. a slight excess wood, which we believe, is transient, does not interfere in the development and progression of volume and taste. the entry level chianti classico is pleasant and juicy.
Decanter’s August 2011 issue
Chianti Classico 2008 – Perfumed vanilla, rose leather and tobacco. Elegant ripe berry, cherry and mineral palate. Great length and depth. Drink: 2011-2015 Four stars
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate Issue 196 8-31-11
The 2007 Chianti Classico Riserva possesses additional dimensions of aromatic nuance and fruit, but without being heavy. There is a lovely sense of clarity here. Sweet dark cherries, menthol and licorice wrap around the long, satisfying finish. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2022 91 pts.
Gambero Rosso monthly magazine April 2011
Article: “Anteprima ’09 Chianti Classico by Leonardo Romanelli
New- La Porta di Vertine Chianti Classico Riserva 2008 – “Hailed in the last two years as the “infant prodigy” of chiantishire’s viticulture, the Lugosch’s family estate seems to have all of the requirements in place to make the quality leap. The Riserva ’08 presents a beautiful, brilliant and lively ruby color, without excess; the bouquet is elegant and intense, with an attack of spices, then the personality materializes thanks to more sophisticated and evolved scents. In the mouth it is a little closed and alcoholic but it has the flesh to emerge. ”
New York Times January 24, 2011 “A Rosé Can Bloom in Winter, Too”
New York TIMES 24.01.2011“…that segment would never deprive itself of a wine like the 2009 rosato from La Porta di Vertine, a small producer in Chianti territory. This wine is made of a mixture of the red sangiovese and canaiolo grapes and the white trebbiano and malvasia. The fermentation is allowed to proceed at its own pace – the 2009 took six months, rather than the matter of days for industrial rosés. The result is richly hued, textured, juicy yet substantial wine that smells like pressed flowers and would go beautifully with a good ham.”
Decanter Magazine Italy 2011 p. 64 “Tuscany’s rising stars”
Tuscany’s rising stars
“…La Porta di Vertine is a Chianti estate of recent foundation whose natural winemaking credentials are as impeccable as the wines themselves. …The first Chianti Classico Riserva vintage 2006, gained instant visibility for the estate, and susequent releases confirm the richness and depth of wines which are already attracting a cult following.”
Vin A Guide to Excellence in Italian Wines
Riserva 2007 – 91pts. A new entry in the world of fine wine, but one you shall hear more of. Well run by director Giacomo Mastretta helped out by master taster Giulio Gambelli and agronomist Ruggero Mazzilli, with almost 20 hectares in prime Gaiole territory, this estate has all in place to produce grand wines. And it does. The new vintage has slightly grittier tannins and tarrier flavours than usual, a no-no, but the lovely notes of red berry and the very typical Chianti high acidity are very welcome. A star is born….
Vinibuoni d’Italia 2011 L’unica guida ai vini da vitigni autoctoni con le migliori aziende selezionate in tutta Italia e in Istria
Riserva 2007 – Corona. After last year’s debut in the guide with the well-deserved Corona for the Chianti Classico Riserva 2006, we approached the Riserva 2007 with special attention. A wine that strongly impressed during the preliminary tastes in February at the Tuscan anteprima, an equally evolutional stage, and actually in retrospect even more promising. All of these impressions were confirmed with successive verifications, which we found in the habitual gifts of intensity and palate reaction. Therefore, here we have one of the most interesting bottles from Gaiole and it obtained the Corona with unanimous applause. Lovely and good fragrance from the base wine from the same vintage.
Slow Wine Guida 2011 Storie di Vita Vigne Vini in Italia
Riserva 2007 – Vino Slow. Giacomo Mastretta has matured experience from all over the world. His enology is dynamic, and focused on the quality of the harvest. This Riserva’s bouquet is definite and exemplifies terroir character. Mouth expression has noteworthy depth.
Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar July – August 2010
Riserva 2007 – 91 pts. Ruby with a pale rim. Knockout nose of red plum, red cherry jam and marzipan. Rich, ripe and dense, with fleshy flavors of sweet red cherry, raspberry syrup and underbrush. Finishes smooth and sweet, with hints of exotic aromatic herbs.
Chianti Classico 2006 – 90 pts. Deep red. Vivacious raspberry and candied cherry aromas are complicated by raspberry liqueur and vanilla notes that gain strength with air. Soft and creamy in the middle, with a very pure floral flavors of red cherry, pomegranate and herbs. The long, vivacious finish shows plenty of lively acidity and smooth tannins. Excellent stuff here.
Riserva 2006 – 90 pts. Dark red with an amber edge. Initially closed nose opens with aeration to offer redcurrant, red cherry and licorice aromas along with an enticing mineral nuance. Then clean, rich and smooth in the mouth, with bright, chewy, mineral-accented red and black fruit flavors given clarity and cut by laser-like acidity. A note of white pepper lingers on the bright finish. An altogether different wine than the ’07, but just as interesting.
Chianti Classico 2007 – 88 pts. Good medium red. The ripe aromas of faded flowers, red cherry and raspberry syrup could use more freshness. Then brighter on the palate, with red berry and red cherry flavors displaying a lively fruit cocktail quality. The building, chewy tannins are a little tough on the long finish but there’s enough fresh red fruit to stand up to them.
La Porta di Vertine receives Decanter Magazine’s top score
In the latest Decanter wine Magazine issue (December 2009) La Porta di Vertine’s Chianti Classico Riserva 2006 has been awarded its highest accolade of 5 stars. In a comprehensive tasting featuring 2007 Chianti Classico and 2006 Chianti Classico Riserva from more than 35 estates, La Porta di Vertine came on top with 19 points.
Richard Baudin, Decanter’s Italian contributor as well as Italian Regional Chair of the Decanter World Wine Awards, described the wine as : “wonderful freshness on the nose, showing spicy fruit with incense, leather and tobacco. Tangy finish of red cherries”.
Vini di Veronelli
Riserva 2006 – 90 pts.