Sangiovese is Italy’s most widely planted grape variety by area and, when grown in the right terroir and handled by the right hands, it can yield spectacularly high-quality results.
Italy may boast an almost inexhaustible reservoir of grape varieties, but there are clear reasons why some have virtually disappeared while others are omnipresent. Sangiovese has been and remains the most commonly cultivated variety in the country—about 70,000 hectares are planted with it. And even if it may have originally come from Romagna, it has become virtually synonymous with the finest wines of Tuscany.
Beyond its marked regional differences, there are a few characteristics that are inherently part of the grape: Sangiovese is sensitive. It doesn’t tolerate excessive heat well, but it also doesn’t thrive in rainy conditions. It prefers to root in higher altitudes and in limestone soils. It buds early—making it vulnerable to late frosts—and tends to produce far too many grapes unless decisive viticultural interventions are made. But if one draws the right conclusions from all these factors, the resulting grapes can give rise to some of the finest red wines in Italy—and indeed the world.
Up until the 1980s, however, that potential was only sporadically realized. The choice between high yields and high quality too often ended with the bottle favoring quantity. This led to a situation where Sangiovese’s naturally high acidity, when coupled with overproduction, became so sharp that the wines barely worked even as pairings for the hearty cuisine of the postwar era.
Instead of reducing yields, producers attempted to smooth out the grape’s unripe edges and green notes by blending in other varieties. Initially, there was the audacious idea to do so with the white Trebbiano grape. Later—beginning more broadly in the 1980s—Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and especially new barriques were used in an attempt to tame Sangiovese’s perceived rusticity.
This latter project delivered the desired results for many winemakers—but at the cost of stripping Sangiovese of its character. The effects are still evident today in numerous wines, especially from Chianti and the Maremma, where oak and international varieties dominate, leaving little trace of the finesse, elegance, and aromatic complexity that Sangiovese can offer.
Fortunately, there were a few winemakers who viewed this development with skepticism from the outset. They began to seriously engage with Sangiovese, seeking to understand and highlight its positive attributes and to use indigenous blending partners that had long—and sometimes very successfully—complemented it. Chief among these were Canaiolo, but also Foglia Tonda, Mammolo, Ciliegiolo, and Colorino. Instead of aging their wines in new, small oak barrels, they chose large, used casks or even cement vats—giving the grape variety, not the type of wood, the first and last word. Many of them also farmed organically or biodynamically, maintained healthy soils and vibrant grapes, and gradually revealed the fantastic qualities for which Sangiovese is now celebrated.
This makes it clear once again: it takes not only the right grape variety and suitable site but also the right winemakers to unlock the full potential of a notoriously complex grape like Sangiovese. And that potential—thanks to its typically fine texture, layered aromas, often cool minerality, impressive clarity, and ability to combine substance with elegance—is repeatedly astonishing, whether the wines come from Montalcino, Chianti, or even Romagna.
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