Italiano
Nittardi, when wine meets art (1)
Not many people who live in Tuscany find themselves going to Germany for a vertical tasting of Chianti Classico. But being a journalist offers all kind of surprises including this. The explanation is quite simple. The host was Peter Femfert who aside from being the lucky owner of the Nittardi estate is also one of the leading art dealers in Frankfurt. It was his idea to organize a tasting of his wines in a unique and top level location: Die Galerie. And this because, as he explained, “In a gallery we exhibit fine art and even wine is culture”.
The fact that Nittardi has a connection with art is no secret. The estate that was once a medieval defense tower, called Nectar Dei, was at a certain point owned by Michelangelo Buonarroti and there are documents that attest to wine being produced there at the time. This connection with art is now being carried on by Femfert who every year, beginning in 1981, commissions two original paintings from an artist of international fame. One is used for the label for his Chianti Classico Casanuova di Nittardi Vigna Doghessa and the other as the print for the silk paper the bottle is wrapped in.
Aside from having a history of art, Nittardi is also a love story. The love a German art dealer has for Italy and Tuscany and the love Peter has for his wife Stefania Canali, a Venetian historian to whom “it was right to give a home in the splendid Chianti hills”, between Castellina in Chianti and Panzano. They acquired Nittardi in 1981 and since the previous owner had already harvested the grapes, they decided to make wine and asked the painter and lithographer Bruno Bruni to design the label. The following year they began to replant the vineyards and in 1992 they built a new and modern winery to replace the old one. Then in 1999 they also bought a farm in Maremma, in Mongibello delle Mandorlaie between Magliano and Scansano. Little by little they created a modern winemaking enterprise with 12 hectares in Chianti, divided into two parcels, and 26 in Maremma which today is run by Peter and Stefania’s son Leon, with Carlo Ferrini acting as enologist.
The tasting in Germany was quite extensive. There were 11 vintages of Chianti Classico Riserva Selezionata, a Sangiovese with a small addition of Merlot that is only produced in the better years. The wine ages for 24 months in 500hl tonneau barrels, one third of which are new wood, before aging at length in the bottle. The vintages were: 2012, 2011, 2010, 2007, 2002, 2001, 1999, 1997, 1995, 1993 and 1985.
Then there were four vintages of Chianti Classico Vigna Doghessa, a Sangiovese varietal from the vineyard of the same name that was in homage to Peter’s Venetian wife. The vineyard is situated at an altitude of 450m above sea level and has a soil rich in marl and alberese lime. The wine ages for 14 months in tonneau barrels. The vintages were: 2013, 2012, 2011 and 2007. We then tasted Nectar Dei, their Maremma standard bearer, which is a blend of 40% Cabernet with Merlot, Syrah, Petit Verdot and 5% “secret” grapes. Of this we tasted ten vintages: 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004 and 2003.
We cannot describe them all and so we made a selection. Today we start with Vigna Doghessa which was the first wine the estate produced and for which 33 renowned artists have designed labels. Tomorrow we will have a faceoff between two estate champions.
