WINERY Family-owned since 1967, located on a hilltop north of the town of Radda, 2,024 feet above sea level, highest vineyards in the Chianti Classico region.

WINE Since the Middle Ages, Vin Santo (“holy wine”) has been an important part of Tuscan wine history. There are many theories about the origin of its name. A legend from Siena tells of a friar who in 1348 cured the sick with the wine normally used by the brothers to celebrate mass. Word spread that this was a miraculous wine, leading to the name “santo” – although another less picturesque explanation cannot be ruled out, which is simply the association of this wine with its customary use during the mass. The recognition of the DOC Vin Santo del Chianti in August 1997 marked an important stage in the quality evaluation of this highly traditional Tuscan wine.

Produced within the 11th century historic walled village Volpaia, commune of Radda in Chianti. At 2,000 feet, this is one of the highest-elevation wineries in the Chianti region.

A hot March was followed by a very cold and wet April and May. Good weather started on June 10 and continued through the end of the month, with early July very hot and dry. The heat was sometimes intense from mid-July to the end of August, with occasional rain that kept the soil suitably wet. Through September and the first half of October the weather was mostly beautiful, interspersed with rainfalls.

Vin Santo is still produced using the same labor-intensive process that was used hundreds of years ago. Towards the end of the growing season, before Volpaia harvested its white grapes, the winery picked the best bunches of Trebbiano and Malvasia to go into the Vinsanto. The grapes were taken to the winery’s Vinsantaia (left), a special attic where the bunches were hung from chains tied to the rafters and dried. The grapes are never touched during the maturation process. The windows were kept open in the Vinsantaia for the next few months, ensuring that the air in the large room was constantly being circulated. On February 10, once the grapes’ sugar levels were high enough, they were pressed and the juice put through a natural process of clarification. The highly-concentrated must was then fermented in small caratelli oak barrels already containing madre (“mother”) – a remnant of the thick residue left over from Vinsanto that had already been bottled for five years.

Scintillating amber. It is a full, balanced wine with intense flavors of cane sugar, apricot jam and sultan grapes. Warm and luscious with an almond finish.