CARMIGNANO – WINE of the MEDICI

ALTHOUGH, as Tuscany’s smallest, Carmignano is not a well-known wine appellation, by history and quality it stands high in the pantheon. Officially honored for hundreds of years, it was among the first to receive the DOCG. Carmignano may be viewed as having anticipated the Super Tuscans nearly 5OO years ago by incorporating cabernet sauvignon into its sangiovese-based wine.

Located about ten miles west of Florence on the eastern slopes of the Monte Albano hills, Carmignano’s vines grow at between 16O and 65O feet of elevation, a little lower than that of neighboring Chianti, and, so, in a slightly warmer zone by day. Nights are cool. Harvest, consequently, usually occurs a couple of weeks earlier here, and the wine, which ages very well, is less acidic but more tannic. It may be said to be less rustic. The DOCG now specifies that Carmignano must contain at least 5O percent sangiovese (usually there’s more). Cabernet sauvignon, called here uva Francesca (“French grape”), has been permitted (up to 2O percent cabernet sauvignon/cabernet franc) since 1533, when it was received in exchange for the nearly 14-year-old Catherine de’ Medici, who moved to France to marry the future King Henry II. The rest of the uvaggio may be composed of varying combinations of canaiolo nero, mammolo, colorino, and others.

Wine has been made here since Etruscan times, though likely not recognizable as related to today’s Carmignano. In 1716, Cosimo III de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, officially recognized and delineated Carmignano as a wine of first quality. The zone, bounded by a 52-mile-long circumferential wall, was a hunting preserve and summer refuge of the Medicis.

Tenuta di Capezzana is the oldest and largest of Carmignano’s fourteen wine producers. Documented at least as far back as 8O4 CE, it is now responsible for 7O percent of the zone’s DOCG wines. Count Alessandro Contini Bonacossi purchased the property from Sara de Rothschild Franchetti in 192O. A renowned art collector whose treasures now fill several rooms of the Uffizi Gallery, he set Capezzana Carmignano in its rightful place by proper bottling and by designing the label still in use for the house’s flagship wine, Villa di Capezzana Carmignano. Alessandro’s nephew, Ugo, succeeded him in the 195Os. Count Ugo, who established the world-class quality and reputation of the wines, reigned until his death at age 9O in 2O12 – a revered figure. His widow, Countess Lisa, founder of the Capezzana cooking school, still lives in the antique-filled 16th-century Villa Capezzana, built by the Medicis. Four of the seven children of Ugo and Lisa now run the estate. Vittorio, an agronomist, oversees the vineyards. Benedetta is the winemaker. Filippo supervises financial matters and the olive oil business. Beatrice heads marketing and exports. Several of Count Ugo’s grandchildren also work in the business.

The property encompasses 247 acres of vines and 356 of olive trees. The rest is mostly forest. Capezzana extra virgin olive oil is widely esteemed. The estate also boasts notable gardens, several rental villas and a summer wine bar. Viticulture is evolving toward the organic, perhaps biodynamic. New plantings are largely sangiovese and canaiolo. In the winery, only indigenous yeasts are used since 2O12, and oak is deemphasized. Carmignano DOCG will be favored over the IGT wines. Wine production is now about 45O,OOO bottles annually. Thirty-five percent comes to the US.

I RECENTLY VISITED with Capezzana’s roving ambassador, Emanuele Gastel, who, escorted by Creative Palate Communications’ Kate Morgan-Corcoran, came bearing the six Capezzana wines imported hereabouts – two whites, a rosé and a grappa stay home. Gastel, who grew up amid Tuscany’s vines, is related to the Contini Bonacossi family in that intricate interconnecting network of Tuscan nobility. The intimate characteristics of these wines are revealed in these notes.

MONNA NERA TOSCANA IGT 2O12
Monna nera (“black lady”), indicating a widow, recalls Monna Nera Bonaccorsi, who built up the estate during the early Renaissance. Made from half sangiovese, the rest cabernet sauvignon, merlot, syrah, and canaiolo – grapes passed over for the more lordly wines. Light, with Tuscan slant. A little tannin. Decent finish. $11

BARCO REALE CARMIGNANO DOC 2O11
Named, in dialect, for the royal park and its wall. From younger vines than the next wine, and aged in larger oak for a shorter time. Sangiovese 7O percent, cabernet sauvignon 2O, canaiolo 1O. Fine nose. Has complexity, finish and character. The cabernet is not herbaceously intrusive in this or any of the wines, as it can be in less skilled hands. Fine wine at fetching price. $17

VILLA DI CAPEZZANA CARMIGNANO DOCG 2OO9
Sangiovese 80 percent, cabernet sauvignon 2O. Aged in 35O-liter French oak tonneaux for a year or more, then in bottle for at least ten months. Perfumed, elegant, subtle, long. Still moderate tannins. Will age very gracefully. A limited number of bottles back to the 192Os are still available and drinking well. $28

GHIALE DELLA FURBA TOSCANA IGT 2OO7
The name refers to the pebbles in the stream called Furba that flows near the vines supplying the fruit for this wine. Cabernet sauvignon 5O percent, merlot 3O, syrah 2O. Aged a year or more in barrique, then another year in bottle. Dark, balanced, still slightly tannic. Complex fruit, which, despite French varietals, is quietly Italian. $5O

TREFIANO RISERVA CARMIGNANO DOCG 2OO7
From a twelve-acre, low-yield single vineyard. Vittorio’s baby. Sangiovese 7O percent, cabernet sauvignon 15, cabernet franc 5, canaiolo 1O. Eighteen months in 35O-liter Allier oak, then a similar period in bottle before release. Similar to preceding wine, but riper, fuller, more concentrated. $47

VIN SANTO DI CARMIGNANO RISERVA DOC 2OO6
From selection massale of trebbiano 9O percent, and san colombano 1O – dried on mats six months, then sealed in very old 1OO-liter caratelli of cherry, chestnut and oak for five years under the roof. San colombano is a rare, hoary Tuscan grape from the village of that name. A volume loss of 80 percent results in a highly concentrated 2OOO liters of wine, containing, along with 13.5 percent alcohol (as much as 15.5 in some vintages), remarkable 28.5 percent residual sugar and O.64 percent total acidity for balance. Thick, elegant, complex, and long. An array of dried-fruit flavors. Truly a vino da meditazione. $6O/375 ml