If there ever was a wine region that resonates with wine lovers around the world, it is Chianti. We were delighted to welcome our good friends, winemaker Catello and his son Francesco, from Fattoria Tregole for an evening of fantastic wines, sumptuous salami and delicious pecorino cheese.

Fattoria Tregole is typical of the majority Italian wineries, family owned and managed. The vineyard was founded in the early 16th century but the region has produced wines since the Etruscan age (that’s 800BC to you and me). In 1980, Catello Conte and his wife decided to buy the vineyard in 1998 to fulfil their lifelong dream of making wines. The dream has been taking shape since then and in 2001 Fattoria adopted a modern approach to winemaking, using the latest technology whilst retaining their Tuscan heritage.

Located in the Castellina district in Chianti, the grapes are grown in a range of vineyards that allow Catello to vinify the wine separately, picking the very best to go into the Chianti Riserva and creating vineyard exclusive wines (such as the Le Pigole). The basic Chianti is not bottled until a minimum of two years aging in the barrel and three years for the Riserva, allowing the wines to evolve and mature before being released onto the market.

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Chianti Classico 2009
Deep ruby red with supple aromas of red cherries, flowers and spice. A full body with balanced, crisp acidity and ripe tannins developing into flavours of leather, slight hint of game and ripe bright cherries with a soft, lingering finish.

Le Pigole ‘2008’
A selection of the finest grapes from across the various vineyards. A fruit driven nose that opens up into spicy and oaky aromas. A powerful mouth with firm tannins that evolves into light raspberry notes that pairs fantastically with salami and pecorino cheese.

Chianti Classico Riserva DOCG 2009
The hit of the evening. A powerful nose with notions of maraschino cherries, vanilla and black pepper. Striking acidity that open up into a rich, creamy mouth feel with subtle notes of oak, dark cherries and a touch of truffle.

Fanero IGT 2005
A rich nose with complex and deep aromas of black pepper, tobacco and black cherries. On the palette, the wine opened up with a well-rounded and grippy tannins that are extremely well balanced. Perfect with game or meat based dished or well-aged cheeses.

Catello spoke with passion about his wines that everyone in the room couldn’t help but fall in love with his wines and Fattoria Tregole.

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We currently stock the Classico and Reserva Chianti’s and are looking at bringing in the other 2 to our range.

By Matt Smith, Wine Expert at Amathus Soho