Castello di Fonterutoli Chianti Classico 1999
- Vintage
- 1999
- Country
- Italy
- Region
- Tuscany
- Size
- 750ml
- Rating
- WA89,JS90
- Grape
- Sangiovese
A splendidly ripe, sweet, layered, exuberantly fruity Chianti Classico from the 1999 vintage, Fonterutoli has turned out a dark ruby/purple-colored effort with plenty of density, abundant mineral-infused black cherry fruit, and good spice as well as earthy overtones. It is supple, yet dense and structured enough to last for a decade. - WA89
This Fonterutoli's flagship wine and is the most representative of the estate's production. This wine's deep roots in the territory represents a point of reference for the whole of Chianti Classico. Very concentrated ruby-purple in color. Complex notes of elegant fruit along with the vanilla and toasty oak. The power and controlled elegance of Sangiovese, an enviable freshness and a natural balance and harmony. - Wine Maker's Notes
A long lasting bond unites the Mazzei family with Tuscany and wines since the XI century.
Ser Lapo Mazzei is the author of the first known document to use the "Chianti" denomination in 1398; in 1435, when his granddaughter Madonna Smeralda Mazzei married Piero di Agnolo da Fonterutoli, the holding became part of the family's estate. Since then, for 24 generations, the Mazzei family produces wine at Castello di Fonterutoli, which even after its recent expansion still remains the beating heart of the company.
Today as in the past, the Mazzei family leads the legacy of their know-how at the place where everything started, at Castello di Fonterutoli, one of the most important institutions of Chianti Classico and Tuscany, with an outstanding history and a bright future ahead.
Since more than six hundred years, the Mazzei family produces unique wines with spirit and passion renewed from generation to generation. At Fonterutoli, as well as at Belguardo and Zisola, resides the same philosophy that aims to promote local vine varieties as an expression of the identity of the region, in respect of diversity and nature, via sustainable agriculture and improvements mindful of the delicate hydro-geologic balance, in order to prevent soil erosion and maximize water reserves in the region. All of this in order to be able to hand the land intact to future generations.
This is complemented by the exclusive use of green manure with the objective of improving the content of organic substances in the soil naturally, enriching at the same time the biodiversity of the agro-ecosystem. For this purpose plant extracts such as field beans, common vetch, sainfoin, clovers, oat, barley, blue tansy, mustard, pasture hawksbeard, lupin beans, pea, horseradish are utilized, which after being sowed in alternating rows are cut after germinating. Particular attention is given to biological pest control with the use and launch of helpful insects, especially with respect to fighting the vine moth, the main vine parasite.
In collaboration with a company that specializes in environmental evaluations and sustainability indicators, it was calculated that thanks to the ecosystems present in the company, that is to say woods, vineyards, plantations, olive groves, and forage crops, Marchesi Mazzei at Fonterutoli has a carbon footprint (emission of greenhouse gases) of 731 t while absorbing CO2eq of 3741 t, resulting in an absorption 5 times greater than the emission and a positive balance of more than 3,000 t of CO2. CO2: 731 t. produced –3741 t. absorned = –3010 t.