Corzano e Paterno "Terre Di Corzano" Chianti DOCG 2023

In the glass, the wine has a saturated, dark ruby color, with flashes of bright crimson just at the edge. Aromas of brambly wild raspberries, sun ripened black cherries, fresh peonies and sotto bosco appear at first, with pine needles, grilled crimini mushrooms and cuoio fiorentino (the fine Florentine leather always called to mind in the aromatics of great Tuscan wine) emerging as the nose evolves over time. On the palate, the wine is warm, with mineral saturated flavors of ripe red and black fruit that echo the nose, then give way to grilled figs and sweet Tuscan herbs, all bracketed by silky coffee-infused tannins and softly integrated acidity. It’s hard to imagine a wine more insistently evocative of the Tuscan landscape.

Corzano e Paterno Chianti “Terre di Corzano” is a textbook Tuscan red blend (90% Sangiovese, 10% Canaiolo). With exceptional quality stemming from organic practices, the grapes are hand‑harvested and fermented separately with indigenous yeasts. During maceration, punching down is performed and only rarely pumping over is done. After 21–35 days maceration, it undergoes malolactic fermentation in wood and steel, aging about a year in large botti.

When Swiss architect Wendel Gelpke bought Corzano in the early 1970s, he promised the Marchese Ippolito Niccolini that his run-down 70-hectare estate would remain intact forever. He made the same covenant with the Marchesa Rangoni-Machiavelli when he bought her Fattoria di Paterno. Together, they form a 140-hectare estate that produces some of the finest olive oil, sheep’s milk cheeses and wine in all of Tuscany. A member of Wendel Gelpke’s family manages every activity, including the holiday rental of the beautifully restored farmhouses and apartments. Aljoscha Goldschmidt, the managing agronomist and winemaker, is Wendel Gelpke’s nephew. If you ever meet “Joschi,” you are as likely to be charmed by his musical, Dutch-accented English as by his irresistible wines.