Chianti vs Chianti Classico: What Is the Difference on a Florence Wine Tour?

Chianti and Chianti Classico compared

The rows below come from the two consortia and from Tuscan tourism and producer guides. Read the last rows first if you only want to know what changes on a wine day from Florence.

The zone and its villages

The Chianti Classico production zone covers 71,800 hectares shared between the provinces of Florence and Siena. The whole territories of Castellina in Chianti, Gaiole in Chianti, Greve in Chianti and Radda in Chianti lie inside it, with parts of Barberino Tavarnelle, Castelnuovo Berardenga, Poggibonsi and San Casciano Val di Pesa.

For a traveller in Florence, this is the wine country closest to the south of the city. Greve, Radda, Gaiole, Castellina, San Casciano Val di Pesa and Tavarnelle Val di Pesa are the Chianti Classico communes you can reach from Florence in a day.

Grapes, yields and taste

Chianti Classico can be made with a minimum of 80% Sangiovese and a maximum of 20% other red varieties. Since 2006 it can be made exclusively with red grapes, so no white grapes go in. The Black Rooster rules also set a lower yield per hectare and a longer minimum ageing period than plain Chianti.

The grapes usually grow higher up, at 250 to 600 meters. Wine Enthusiast notes that this elevation gives Chianti Classico its violet and spice flavours.

Eight subzones, two of them next to Florence

The Chianti consortium lists eight subzones: Colli Aretini, Colli Fiorentini, Colli Senesi, Colline Pisane, Montalbano, Montespertoli, Rufina and Terre di Vinci. Each can be made as normale or riserva. Colli Fiorentini and Rufina are the ones closest to Florence, so a short wine outing from the city often lands in Chianti DOCG country.

The blend is more open. Chianti uses 70% to 100% Sangiovese, may include no more than 10% white grapes and a maximum of 15% Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.

The Consorzio del Vino Chianti was founded in 1927 by a group of winegrowers.

Annata, Riserva and Gran Selezione

The consortium rules set the minimums below. Gran Selezione was introduced in 2014 and comes from estate-owned grapes only, either a single vineyard or a selection of the best grapes. Eleven UGAs, village names such as Radda, Gaiole, Greve and Lamole, may appear on Gran Selezione labels.

On a cellar visit, ask for the Annata and the Riserva of the same estate side by side.

When each one wins

Pick Chianti Classico when you want depth and a wine that ages. The Black Rooster rules demand a lower yield per hectare and a longer minimum ageing period, and the grapes grow higher, which brings violet and spice.

Pick Chianti when you want a first tasting close to the city. The wider blend rules give winemakers room, and the Colli Fiorentini and Rufina subzones sit just outside Florence.

On a wine tour, the fair test is your own palate. The Chianti Sunset Wine Tour runs 5 to 7 hours from $143 per person and ends with the evening light over the vines.

Climbing the ladder

Gran Selezione needs at least 90% Sangiovese, with the rest only indigenous red grapes, and 30 months of ageing including 3 months in bottle. Riserva follows with at least 24 months. Annata is the everyday Chianti Classico with at least 12 months.

Both families also make a sweet wine. Vin Santo del Chianti Doc and Vin Santo del Chianti Classico Doc. Ask whether the estate pours one at the end of the tasting.

The Tuscan Wineries Tour with Lunch gives you 8 hours across Tuscan cellars for $168.20 per person, enough time to ask for an older bottle.

From the Medici to the Black Rooster

In 1716 Cosimo III, Grand Duke of Tuscany, defined the Chianti territory, about 70000 hectares stretching between Florence and Siena. The same Bando Mediceo defined four areas: Chianti, Pomino, Carmignano and Val d'Arno di Sopra.

As Chianti spread beyond that line, the old zone needed its own name. A 1932 ministerial decree let wine from the 1716 zone use the adjective Classico, and the Black Rooster brand grew from it. Chianti Classico received DOC status in 1967 and was upgraded to DOCG in 1984. The Chianti Classico consortium itself dates to 1924, when 33 wine growers founded it in Radda.

Three things to check

First, the Black Rooster. Since 2013 it must appear on the main label, neck label or back label of a Chianti Classico bottle. No rooster on a bottle labelled Chianti means Chianti DOCG.

Second, the words after Chianti. A subzone name such as Rufina or Colli Fiorentini marks Chianti DOCG. The words Riserva or Gran Selezione after Classico tell you the ageing level.

Third, a village name on a Gran Selezione. Radda, Gaiole, Greve and Lamole are among the UGAs that may appear on the label.

Buying bottles to fly home? TSA limits carry-on liquids to containers of 3.4 ounces (100 ml) or less, so wine goes in checked baggage, and US CBP allows returning residents aged 21 or over one liter of alcohol duty free.

Pick by traveller type

The table matches common traveller types to a Chianti wine day that leaves Florence. Every tour listed offers free cancellation up to 24 hours before.

The harvest in Chianti Classico runs from the first half of September to the second half of October, depending on location and altitude. Book early for those weeks.