Between Florence and Siena, the Chianti Classico vineyard area’s idyllic landscape of cypresses and olive trees, historic villages and hillside vineyards never fails to take visitors’ breath away. But though this may look like a timeless, unchanging scene, at its heart lies one of Italian wine’s greatest innovators.
The name of San Felice has been synonymous with a pioneering spirit – and a desire to push boundaries – since the mid-20th century. While its neighbours were producing Chianti Classico wines containing at least 10% white grapes – as required by the DOC regulations at the time – San Felice decided to pursue a different path. Recognising the quality and potential of the variety, San Felice chose to produce a varietal Sangiovese in 1968, unhindered by the DOC rules.
This game-changing wine was called Vigorello: a new, premium-quality Vino da Tavola that would celebrate the unique synergy between grape, soil and climate. Its release represented a change in attitude – and in philosophy – that would alter the face of Tuscan wine forever.
Rediscovering lost treasures
The success of Vigorello underlined the importance of protecting Tuscany’s viticultural heritage and forgotten indigenous varieties – Abrusco, Ciliegiolo, Mazzese and, above all, Pugnitello – before it was too late. In collaboration with the University of Florence, in 1987 San Felice created a 2.5ha experimental vineyard called the Vitiarium, dedicated entirely to traditional local varieties at risk of extinction: a place of experimentation, research and viticultural renewal.
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