Borgo Sugame - Greve in Chianti, Italy

CHIANTI CLASSICO’S DNA
(deoxyribonucleic acid)

The isolated and perfectly exposed Borgo Sugame vineyard.

On our first Greve visit thirty years ago, things were simple; a place real folks lived in as opposed to places outsiders bought. Ever more chic these days, ex-Police-man Mr. Sting has a home and winery place close by. For Borgo Sugame owner/winemaker Lorenzo Miceli vineyards and winemaking is a family tradition. If either of these two fellows truly has a message in a bottle, it's Lorenzo and his two organically farmed Sangiovese offerings. It seems over the years some of the wines from Chianti have lost their way, at least the way of the old time classic wines which emphasized fruit and terroir vs. darkness, alcohol and adding other red grapes. Not so here.

When E&R's first vintage from Greve In Chianti's Borgo Sugame arrived back in the day, their top wine - a Chianti Classico- had already sold out at the winery. Now we place our order six months early.

Greve-in-Chianti is one of a handful of the planet's greatest wine producing terroirs. It all gathers in a swath a few kilometers north of Greve on down to Montalcino: earth's prime time for Sangiovese. Greve's perfect Sangiovese microclimate is enhanced by its super special stone-based "galestro" soil: a key chromosome of the finest of true Chianti DNA.

You are a bit like your mom and dad, no? Greve's top Chianti is the same, some of its DNA character comes from stones like this:

Galestro rock - Chianti DNA.

ANTICO BORGO SUGAME:
GREVE IN CHIANTI'S LITTLE GEM

For Chianti fans, the towns "Greve In Chianti" and nearby "Panzano In Chianti" are the epitome of true Chianti Classico. When we’ve visited Lorenzo Miceli's small farm over the years ago, we loved his wines and his way of producing them. Lorenzo's wines harken back to the glory days of the region: before oppressive new wood and all the journalist high scores for wines when "way over the top" seemed the goal vs. "traditional", character, class and an identity of balance to grape and place. The Borgo Sugame wines make the most of their terroir - in tiny quantities which sell out fast each year.

(E)

Lorenzo and daughter making homemade pasta for their Oregon guests.

Click on each wine for more detail.