Castello di Ama, Chianti Classico Gran Selezione, San Lorenzo, 2015
Castello di Ama, Chianti Classico Gran Selezione, San Lorenzo, 2015
- 75cl
- 13.5%
- Red Still
- Sangiovese
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Optimal drinking window: 2026 - 2040
San Lorenzo is one of two single-vineyard Gran Selezione bottlings from Castello di Ama, and it's arguably the more perfumed, more graceful of the pair. Sangiovese does the heavy lifting here, fleshed out with a touch of Malvasia Nera and Merlot, grown on a vineyard that catches cool breezes at altitude in Gaiole. The result is Chianti Classico at its most serious, far removed from the straw-flask stereotype some still can't shake.
2015 was a generous, ripe vintage in Tuscany, and that warmth shows in the wine's plush core of fruit, but Ama's restrained hand and cool site keep everything in check. Expect sour cherry, dried roses and a savoury, almost bloody edge, wrapped in fine, persistent tannin.
What the critics say:
"The 2015 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione San Lorenzo represents a blend of some of the estate's best Sangiovese from vines that are 20 years old and more. You do feel that extra density, intensity and complexity within the very fiber of this beautiful wine. The effect is deep and layered. Castello di Ama is characterized by limestone clay soils mixed with both galestro and alberese marl stones. There is about 60 centimeters of topsoil and compacted clay below that."
"What first strikes you about the nose is that it offers one of the purest fruit expressions of all the 2015 Gran Seleziones. Blackcurrants, orange and lemon rind, brambleberries, heather, sage, thyme and blackberry leaves are all a feature. The tannins are steely, and the flavors are so savory. The fruit is carried through to the long, chewy finish by the highly refreshing acidity. Drink in 2020."
The San Lorenzo vineyard sits at around 450-500 metres above sea level near Gaiole in Chianti, where galestro and alberese soils, flaky, mineral-rich clay-schist and limestone, impose real stress on the vines and keep yields low. Altitude brings cooling breezes and wide diurnal swings, slowing ripening and preserving the acidity that gives Sangiovese its backbone. It's a site that favours perfume and structure over sheer weight.
Chianti Classico Gran Selezione sits at the top of the Chianti Classico pyramid, introduced in 2013 to recognise the finest single-vineyard or estate-selected wines, requiring a minimum of 30 months' ageing and stricter yield limits than Riserva. It's Tuscany's answer to Burgundy's premier cru ambitions, a way of separating serious, site-driven Sangiovese from everyday Chianti. Castello di Ama was among the small handful of producers whose existing wines, San Lorenzo included, were grandfathered in as benchmarks for the category.
The 2015 growing season in Tuscany delivered that rare combination of favourable conditions that winemakers dream about. A warm, dry summer provided the sustained heat that Sangiovese craves, whilst crucial rainfall in late August refreshed the vines just when they needed it most. The harvest kicked off earlier than usual, with producers able to pick at optimal ripeness without the panic that often accompanies hot vintages.
What emerged from cellars was a vintage that marries power with finesse in a way that immediately caught critics' attention. The Sangiovese shows remarkable concentration and depth of colour, with tannins that feel substantial yet polished rather than aggressive. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot thrived in the heat, producing some genuinely outstanding Super Tuscans. These wines are drinking superbly now, offering immediate pleasure whilst retaining the structure to cellar gracefully until 2035 and beyond for the finest examples.
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