For Gori, the fact that Chianti Classico is defying the crisis is not down to good marketing, but to the wine itself: “Wine lovers clearly appreciate the consistency between what they drink and what we talk about: Chianti Classico speaks for itself. It doesn’t necessarily have to adapt to the tastes of a rapidly changing clientele.” In saying this, the director is alluding to three innovations of recent years: the introduction of the Gran Selezione, its combination with the “Unità Geografiche Aggiunte” (UGA: “supplementary geographical units”) and the focus on indigenous grape varieties. Thanks to these decisions, the relatively large production area has become easier to understand. Whilst the UGA describe the considerable climatic and geological differences between, for example, San Casciano in the north-west and Castelnuovo Berardenga in the south-east, wine production follows the same rules everywhere. Two decades ago, the diversity of the wines was criticised as a lack of identity for Chianti Classico. Today, it proves to be a strength within the region’s unity.

This is best illustrated by the top category, Gran Selezione: when it was introduced in 2014, there was great concern that the pursuit of wines with an international character would be at the expense of the Annata wines. At the latest with the decision taken in 2021 to blend Sangiovese with no more than ten per cent indigenous varieties, the winemakers have prioritised typicity. Carlotta Gori therefore speaks of an ‘elevator effect’, thanks to which the Gran Selezione has raised the standard of the Riserva and Annata wines both qualitatively and economically, without detracting from their distinctive character.

Cement as a friend of single-varietal wines

Following an unsettled yet positive 2025, things are also looking up a few kilometres further south-west at Tregole in Castellina in Chianti. Here, Sophie Conte has been producing around 25,000 bottles since 2015 on what is now 5.5 hectares: “The US tariffs did slow the market down a little, but fortunately it quickly picked up again.” She sells 40 per cent of her wine to the US – and could probably sell even more there: “Interest in the artisanal work of small wine-growing estates is growing steadily,” reports Conte. “That’s why I’d like to expand the vineyard to between eight and ten hectares.”

Sophie Conte currently produces four single-varietal Sangiovese wines. “I believe that the distinctiveness of Tregole’s barren soils is best captured through the clear identity of Sangiovese,” she says, explaining her choice. All three Chianti Classico wines ferment in concrete tanks, in which the Annata also matures. The Riserva and Gran Selezione from the donkey vineyard are aged in tonneaux and large wooden casks ranging from seven to 16 hectolitres: “Some vintages need large wood, others smaller,” explains Sophie Conte. Above all, however, she sees the concrete tank as a “good friend that helps the wine to develop”.

The tenth harvest, in autumn 2026, will yield around 25,000 bottles from seven hectares of vines. Forty per cent of these will be sold in Italy, with the remainder going to the US and northern Europe. “Last year, the fact that we had a third less wine available from the 2023 vintage due to the spring rain caused us more trouble than the US tariffs,” reports Fucile. “Nevertheless, our small business has grown more than expected.” In the summer of 2026, the first Gran Selezione – the 2023 vintage – will be released. It comes from a vineyard planted as recently as 2016, which may only be referred to unofficially as ‘Clos de la Madeleine’. “We are passionate about Burgundy and quickly have recognised the potential of the young vines,” explains Fucile. “They are trained in a modern Alberello style, where the foliage shields the grapes from the scorching sun like an umbrella.”

For the Gran Selezione, the grapes are destemmed; for the Riserva, they are fermented whole; and for the Annata, 30 per cent are fermented on the stems. Stainless steel, concrete or wood are used for fermentation, whilst ageing takes place in Burgundy pièces, tonneaux and large wooden casks. “The more a vineyard expresses itself in the wine, the less intervention is required in the cellar,” explains Fucile. The fact that small wooden barrels are used for the simpler wines and large barrels for the more complex ones underlines this philosophy.

However, the Innesto N.01 is not intended to replace the Annata in the Chianti Classico range, nor does it aim to be a new ‘Super Tuscan’: “Innesto doesn’t aim to be ‘super’, but rather a new, young, contemporary wine that is part of my story,” affirms the descendant of Bettino Ricasoli, who invented the ‘formula’ for this wine in the 19th century.

Having forged a career as a lawyer in Milan, away from the wine-growing business run by her father Francesco, Sofia is returning ever more frequently to Monti in Chianti, in the southern part of the wine-growing region, to devote herself to the roughly 15 hectares of vines surrounding the Santa Lucia farmhouse where she grew up. This niche allows her to experiment with new ideas more freely than the Ricasoli brand identity permits.

Collaboration, typicity and single-varietal wines, single vineyards and biodiversity are emerging as the common threads linking these five female winemakers. With a spirit of experimentation and respect for the growing region, they could explain why, in Chianti Classico, even small-scale producers are weathering the crisis more successfully than elsewhere. A cautious shift is emerging away from Bordeaux-style château wines and towards Burgundy-style ‘ single vineyards ’ – in the knowledge that Sangiovese is not Pinot Noir, but benefits significantly from concrete and large oak barrels.