Chianti Classico wine hierarchy: Riserva and Gran Selezione

Tuscany engenders all manner of high expectations for visitors: cypress-lined hillsides, world-class gastronomy, hilltop villages and delectable wines. Fortunately, you don’t have to look hard in Chianti Classico to find all of the above.

Yet while tourists gaze in awe, winemakers busy themselves making some of the most complex and delicious Italian wine on earth. They have farmed vineyards located between Florence and Siena for centuries, and it is here that the Sangiovese grape finds its natural home. Producing fine wine in Chianti Classico is a serious business. Winegrowers have to contend with a mercurial climate, in addition to an extensive, but essential, framework of rules and regulations. These were created to ensure that memorable Chianti Classico ends up in your glass, eliminating the risk of bitter disappointments.

Enshrined in the Chianti Classico DOCG (appellation), the rules have created a three-tier classification of the region’s superlative wines. Modern wine from the Chianti Classico zone is always complex, made substantially (80-100% of the blend) from low-cropped, top-quality Sangiovese aged in wood. Many of the best examples are classified as ‘Annata’, which must be aged for a minimum period of 12 months before release.

The Riserva category of Chianti Classico is a step up the hierarchy. The rules stipulate a higher minimum level of alcohol, in addition to a base level ageing period of 24 months. At the top of the pyramid stands the Gran Selezione tier, introduced to consumers in 2014. This represents a minority of the region’s best wines, which must be reviewed by an expert tasting panel before they can be sold. Not only are Gran Selezione wines aged for 30 months before release, but they also must be produced from vineyards belonging to the estate.

Of course, no wine producer in the Chianti Classico region operates in a straitjacket. Chianti’s winemakers have considerable freedom (within the confines of the regulatory framework) to fashion wines that cater to a variety of palates. Some wines are aged in powerful new French oak barrels, which imbues Sangiovese with a creamy texture and polished structure. There is also a firmament committed to blending a small percentage of international varieties – up to 20% – into the final blend.

There are ample opportunities to flex your creative muscles with the central Tuscan wine region, as long as the quality standards and basic production techniques are adhered to. It is this judicious balance between liberty and quality control which maintains Chianti Classico’s unrivalled reputation.

Overview of the Chianti Classico Hierarchy

What is a Riserva wine?

This is an example of a clear parallel between the wine and car industries. The sight of an Audi or Mercedes logo is an easily identifiable marker of high quality, instantly engendering trust. Similarly, if your bottle of Chianti Classico has ‘Riserva’ on the label, then you can buy with supreme confidence. The Riserva category is made according to the highest standards: the wines are aged for a minimum period of 24 months in wood, compared to 12 months for the ‘standard’ tier of Annata wines. However, like car manufacturers, it is the producers who are ultimately responsible for the quality of the end product.

The regulations also insist upon a minimum period of three months bottle age before release. Riserva wines represent less than 25% of the area’s total production, as only top-quality base wines can make it into the final blend. The result is a structured and aromatic glass of wine, with extra layers of depth and complexity when compared to younger bottles.

What is a Gran Selezione wine?

In 2014, Chianti Classico redefined the boundaries of what could be achieved in Tuscan winemaking. The authorities introduced a new tier of red wine, Gran Selezione, designed to showcase the pinnacle of exceptional wine quality in central Tuscany. If a winemaker has ambitions to release a Gran Selezione wine, then they are forced to comply with the highest standards imaginable.

For a start, only wines made in the best vintages can (potentially) qualify for Gran Selezione status. The regulations insist upon a minimum level of alcohol of 13% abv and a minimum ageing period of 30 months in wood; few Italian regions demand such stringent requirements. Moreover, no vintages can be distributed until an expert panel has tasted the wines and certified their quality credentials. The inaugural wines were bottled from the 2010 vintage.

At first glance, this appears almost Orwellian in its insistence upon watertight and non-negotiable rules. Yet the results speak for themselves. There is a majestic quality to every bottle of Gran Selezione Chianti Classico that is rarely encountered. It has demonstrated exactly what the region is capable of, although improvements and minor amendments are being made all the time.

It would be an exaggeration to claim that the Gran Selezione regulations have created a revolution in local winemaking. Nevertheless, the category has certainly shaken things up in this ancient corner of Italy. Aficionados of the style, if lucky enough to find a bottle, can hold their heads high.