Every now and then, you let yourself be seduced. This wine - I admit it - is the promotional gift of a larger wine shop in Switzerland, which has been directly involved in this old Italian winery since 1988 (that is, for 25 years) and has also invested a lot there. So it is - so to speak - their own winery. Since the wine house has a reputation for intense, sometimes aggressive advertising, it's not surprising that a bottle of their "own" wine also ended up in my cellar. Actually, I consistently avoid all giveaways. I want to be independent in my judgments, determine for myself what wine I drink, and write a "Drank." If I nevertheless add a note here, it is not because the wine is sensationally good - just good, without "sensational" - but because it has passed (for me) the "Chianti test". It is a wine, of the traditional kind, and yet of a quality that impresses. In fact, in earlier years, too many inconsequential, even "lousy" Chianti were also hurled into Switzerland, so that its reputation here (unfortunately not only here) is badly tarnished. Of course, there are a few top Chiantis, but - according to my experience - they are no longer authentic, but rather enhanced to stand up to the onslaught of the assemblages of the Supertoscans. But where has the "real" Sangiovese - the most cultivated grape variety in Italy - gone? I know I haven't been looking for it. Maybe I should! But I hardly have any other experience than the magazine "Merum" aptly characterized a year ago under the title "Banges Hoffnung auf neue Blüte" (the article can also be found in the magazine www.wein-plus.eu): "A big wine lake called Chianti Classico, the bottlers will offer the more expensive qualities as Riserva and the vintners will offer them as Selezione 
It is the producers who determine which is the better wine, they classify their wines themselves. Because they determine what is Grand Cru - say: Riserva, respectively Selezione -, and what is Appellation régional - say: Annata." In conclusion, the question is asked: "Who does the crisis make poor and who rich...? And the answer: "There are not only wine endings (in wine production in Tuscany), some have also to laugh. The wine houses are flourishing like never before. While the plaster is peeling on the farmhouses, the bottlers are building wine temples. The lower the price of cask wine, the higher their marketing opportunities and profits." No wonder Chianti has been in crisis (for years). Because I'm not entirely unfamiliar with the situation, I poured myself this Chianti (ultimately also from a wine house) after all. I am pleasantly surprised: "Although rather restrained in the bouquet, but on the palate fruity, charming and dense, not intrusive, but what you can call authentic." I'm satisfied, very satisfied, even though it's a giveaway I usually avoid.