AA San Ferdinando, Chianti Podere Gamba

A brilliantly-priced smoothy-chops Chianti from AA San Ferdinando. Nice fruit here, but the joker in the blend is some Pugnitello, a pugnacious indigenous grape rediscovered by the University of Florence and being gradually reintroduced to this part of Tuscany.

San Ferdinando‘s estate spreads over 60 hectares in the heart of Tuscany. Podere Gamba is the vineyard name, lying on medium-textured stony clay soils rich in potassium. Most of the vineyard activities, hoeing included, are rigorously done by hand, while tractors are used for topping and treatments that follow the principles of supervised pest control.  The vineyard is treated like a garden, with great respect for the environment and for nature. Weedkillers and insecticides are completely banned. The Chianti blend is Sangiovese and Pugnitello (85/15), the grapes are hand harvested normally in mid October. The two grapes are vinified separately in stainless steel tanks before being transferred into Allier oak barrels for eight months before being bottled.

With its nose of forest fruits, cherry, liquorice and coffee this is a silky style of Chianti with soft tannins and good juice. The high acids and tannins make it a perfect match with fatty meats, rib–eye steak being one.  Also surprisingly good with Asian and North African spiced foods.  Pugnitello is named after an ancient Tuscan grape variety, the word referring to the form of the cluster, which resembles a small fist (pugno).