A bottle of Chianti, a bottle of history

A bottle of red
A bottle of white
It all depends on your appetite
I’ll meet you any time you want
In our Italian restaurant
-Billy Joel, Scenes from an Italian Restaurant

As a child of the ‘70’s, that song resonates with me.  Dining out was rare back then, but I loved going out to the local Italian restaurant with red checked tablecloths, a candle in an old wine bottle, and excellent hardy food.  Salami & cheese, spaghetti, and on those very special occasions Veal Parmesan.  The owners were the servers, cooks, and bus boys.  They remained jovial while being ever-present. 

Times change.  Now the appetizer is a charcuterie board.  (How did the French get into the action with naming the appetizer platter of Italian meats?)  Pasta dishes are far more complex, and the Italian restaurant is owned by a restaurant group and managed by a team of professionals. 

Long gone is the wicker covered Chianti bottle with a candle, replaced in the name of décor, ambiance and “creating and experience for the guest.”  I miss the traditional Italian restaurant of my youth.

When in Chianti, we saw a beautiful Agriturismo from the window of our hotel. We hoped for a charming experience, reminiscent of those red-table-clothed dinners.

During a quick call, all was arranged, a wine tasting, of Chianti Classico, for just 20€ a bottle.  The time and money we spent at Agriturismo Le Fraschette was some of the best spent over the entire trip. 

We drove down the gravel track to a farmhouse down the hill.  Surrounded by grape vines, surely the farm produced Chianti, there in Radda in Chianti, the heart of the Chianti region. 

Desirée, one of the owners of this vineyard, walked us through the winemaking process, from managing the growth of the San Genovese grapes on the vines year after year, to pressing, fermentation and bottling.  Sipping wine and munching on local cheese on the terrace overlooking the Chianti valley was spellbinding. 

Her husband Mauro was a member of the Consortium of Chianti Classico, the group that had taken Chianti from simple table wine in wicker covered bottles to a world class red.  I struggled to understand how the wine had made such a transition in quality, during my lifetime.

Her husband Mauro joined us, and his father stopped by as well. 

They took a break from cleaning the vat from the first grape pressing of the year to chat with us. 

Their vineyard had been in their family for over 500 years.  He could not be sure how long, as the paper trail ended prior to that.  Mauro taught us about the impact of sun, soil, and water on wine, and why some parcels of land produced excellent wine while others nearby were not worthy of planting.

I asked him about the elephant in the room, the transition of Chianti wine over the years.  The bottle we were drinking – I mean tasting – was excellent, far from the old bottles covered in wicker.  He explained that for a proper meal, yes Chianti Classico, always labeled with a small black rooster, is wonderful, the perfect match for red meat.  It has been aged and matured to meet the delicate flavors of a proper meal.  However, he pointed out there is a time and place for the immature Chianti table wine, from the prior season.  He went into his house and brought out a bottle covered in wicker, and then cut a course piece of salami.  He explained about the prior generations, who did not have the luxury of aging their wine over years, who ate simple fare.  Salami might be the extent of a meal for them.  Pairing salami with the simple, young Chianti is the perfect balance.

Mauro went on to share with is several bits of contadino wisdom, and the joys of working the same land, generation after generation.  He talked about the early days of the Chianti federation, as a means of defense hundreds of years ago.  In more recent times, the consortium is a means of economic defense, preserving tradition and quality, and perhaps some lessons about living a good life as well.