Monteraponi ‘Baron’ Ugo’ Chianti Classico 2017

Why is this Wine so Yummy?

Monteraponi is a terrific address for readers who enjoy traditionally styled wines. The Braganti family crafts wines of note from their estate vineyards in Radda. Aging is done in large neutral oak. The Monteraponi wines have been intriguing for a number of years, and they keep getting better.

Antonio Galloni

About Monteraponi

Monteraponi is an ancient medieval village, built around three square-based towers dating back to the 10th century. The winery is situated on the top of a 470-meter-high hill and dominates the valley below, which slopes down towards the Arbia river.

Monteraponi hits the short list of so many when it comes to quality Chianti. Of the thousands produced it’s 1 of just over 50 in Walter Speller’s classification and exploration of the challenges of the fragmented classification of Chianti & Chianti Classico is well worth a read.

In the Vineyard

The winery extends over an area of 200 hectares set in a natural amphitheater, which is exposed to the south and sheltered from the north winds. The vineyards are spread over 12 hectares, the olive trees over 8 hectares, while the remaining area is covered with towering, ancient oaks and chestnut trees which surround and isolate the winery from the outside world.

Monteraponi is one of the great recent success stories of Chianti Classico. Michele Braganti describes himself as the back sheep of the family, whose main business activity is in the production of fine silver frames in Florence. “My father bought the property in 1974, which was abandoned at the time, to make a little wine for fun,” Braganti told me. “I finished my studies in economics in 1998. Let’s just say I didn’t do too well. My mother sent me here as punishment. First I sold fruit and then in 2003 we started making out own wines.” Monteraponi is a typical Tuscan borgo, a self-contained hamlet that dates back to Medieval times. The sprawling property spans 200 hectares of which only 12.5 are under vine. A collection of small parcels are all at altitude, which is increasingly valuable in today’s world. The wines were a bit rustic in the early days, but they have improved markedly in recent years. Braganti takes much of his inspiration from Burgundy and his wines often have a striking sense of transparency. The wines I tasted from cask, including a new Sangiovese, were insanely beautiful and point to a very bright future. Fans of classically-built wines will want to take note.

Galloni

In the Winery

Harvesting, which usually begins in early October, is done by hand: the grapes are put in small crates, laid out on a conveyor belt and rinsed thoroughly. The grapes are then placed in a special destemmer, which comes from Burgundy and is designed for delicate grape varieties such as Sangiovese and Pinot Noir. The berries are further hand-sorted on a vibrating sorting table to select only the best ones, which are loaded into the press and undergo soft pressing to keep the skins as whole as possible.

Fermentation is carried out in old concrete vats and in elliptical-based, truncated cone-shaped concrete vats manufactured by Nomblot. The vats have no thermal-conditioning system in order to make fermentation as spontaneous and natural as possible. No selected yeast nor activators, feeders or malolactic bacteria are added.

Situated next to the winemaking cellar is the ageing cellar, housed in an old building, three-quarters underground, the ideal environment for wine ageing. The wine is aged exclusively in large oak barrels coming from Austria and Burgundy.

For Baron ‘Ugo:

Fermentation is in vitrified cement (concrete) tanks without temperature control and no adding selected east. Maceration on the rinds for 40-45 days with temperature peaks never over 28°, thanks to frequent open air tamping executed manually. Immediate Malolactic fermentation always in cement tanks, no Malolactic Bacteria addiction. Ages for 36 months, 100 % in 30 Hl vat of Allier and Slavonic oak.1 month of sharpening in the cement tank, 5 months of sharpening in the bottle.
Non filtered wine.

Where in the World is Monteraponi?

Monteraponi is in Radda right in the heart of Chianti Classico.