Production area: the entire territory of the municipalities of Greve in Chianti (FI), Castellina in Chianti (SI), Gaiole in Chianti (SI), Radda in Chianti (SI), the municipalities of Barberino Val d'Elsa ( FI), San Casciano in Val di Pesa (FI), Tavarnelle Val di Pesa (FI), Castelnuovo Berardenga (SI) and Poggibonsi (SI).
Hectares: 7209 ('99).
The area involved in the production of wine "Chianti Classico" is an extraordinary piece of Tuscany, the geographical area called Chianti, which stretches between Florence and Siena.
For centuries this land, beginning with the Etruscans, is home to advanced civilizations, many arena of contention, famous for its beautiful landscapes and famous for the excellent products that arise from the soil due to favorable environmental conditions, the ingenuity and tenacity of its population. It 's the first area in the world to be demarcated as an area of production of fine wines from a legal instrument used for this purpose, such as the historic ban enacted in 1716 by Grand Duke of Tuscany Cosimo III.
Morphologically the environment can be described as a plateau, is a complex, hilly with basic share for the 280 meters asl and an average elevation of not more than, in general, at 450.
The climate is continental with precipitation fairly uniform, characterized by a high annual average of 800-900 mm in approximately 85 days of rain. Although the temperatures are of the continental own, of course, are influenced by different types of exposure.
Soil most of the land is, by origin and nature of the soil, very favorable for woody crops. Shale, marl and limestone alternate with some plague Pliocene sands of the auction and a very small oasis of clay Piacentian.
Wine that is born in this land it is mentioned, since 1200, on manuscripts, chronicles and historical documents. It 's only in 1700, however, which begins on the territory a real wine business as a result of the early successes that Chianti was beginning to get outside of Tuscany and abroad.
Between 1834 and 1837 Bettino Ricasoli, a very young age, he developed, experimenting in the family to Brolio, the most appropriate blend to produce the Chianti and reported in a note preserved at the Accademia dei Georgofili.
And so, in 1800, this wine took shape and character immediately adopted the name of the production area. Also at that time began to increase requests for this product because of its peculiar characteristics mainly due to favorable environmental conditions and great seriousness, experience and passion for wine, but also occasionally to the vicissitudes of the devastated French vineyards, at that time , by phylloxera.
Not being the output of the territory at that time, able to cope with growing demand, started to produce wine with grapes and systems used in Chianti, in most of Tuscany and sometimes even outside, getting product that, at first, were called "Chianti use" and, later, for lack of a serious legislation to forbid it, were even sold as Chianti.
The name, without warning, turned into wine by geographical and Chiantigiani, dispossessed of their name, they had to wait until 1932 when, after many battles, a ministerial commission to recognize their wine, by way of compensation, the right to use the name " Chianti Classico "as produced in the historic area that is home to the oldest where he was born and has established this wine.
In 1963 Act 930 placed a first order of names in the industry allowing the Chianti Classico, in 1967, to receive the top Italian wines, the designation of origin and that in 1984 and guaranteed.
The production of Chianti Classico is around every year, on average, around 270/280.00 hl, with an average yield of just over 40 hl. Much of the wine produced is sold bottled and exported around 65/70%.
The Consorzio del Chianti Classico, Chianti producers with vision founded in 1924 and the first organization of its kind to form in our country, has always been the cement that held together the producers and the seat of continuous efforts aimed at upgrading and enhancing, with all means, produced locally authenticated under the brand Gallo Nero