Rufina is the smallest and most autarchic of the Chi- anti sub-areas, its feet on the north-eastern borders of the city of Florence, its shoulders on the Tuscan-Romagna Apennines; about 850 hectares of vine- yards up to 500 meters above sea level on limestone soils, rich in galestro and alberese, for a production of around 3.5 million bottles per year.
It is a suitable land, included in the famous Bando di Cosimo III Medici who in 1716 defined the boundaries and assumptions of the best wines, divided into the municipalities of Rufina, Dico- mano, Londa, Pelago and Pontassieve, all united by a vibrant, fine and elegant Sangiovese grape. And by a handful of tenacious, proud producers, in love with their land and their work, guided by the light of stoic, historical figures who, even in the most difficult years, never thought of giving up; let alone call into question the denomination with its specific features. That’s what differentiates it in the Mare Magnum of Chianti, on the one hand the viaticum for the global market but on the other hand condemns the approval and price war.
«You live with Rufina or you die in Chianti», to quote Federico Giuntini at the head of Selvapiana, a pivotal winery for resilience and quality in Chianti Rufina, as well as long-time President of the relevant Consortium; «A strict and coercive vision of the territory, a strong thread linking vineyard and bottle–echoes Lamberto Frescobaldi from the nearby Castello di Nipozzano–Wine is made with grapes and grapes are made in the vine- yard, this is the most revolutionary banality to find in the glass the qualities of our land, those that bring it out».
Gambero Rosso Wine Travel Food n.138 – https://issuu.com/gamberorossointernational/docs/winetravelfood138
