1988 Flaccianello della Pieve
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Tasting notes
This is remembered as a beautiful growing season with a very cold spring, with lower than average temperatures, followed by a very hot and dry summer season. The 1988 Flaccianello della Pieve has shed all of its fruit and today delivers textbook aromas of mature Sangiovese. Those tertiary aromas include smoke, road pavement, tar, licorice and campfire ash. Again, the natural acidity of the grape saves the day, and the wine feels fresh, almost piquant, in terms of mouthfeel. The wine's firmness or inner fiber also remains intact. It offers a uniquely glossy or polished quality that emerges with particular emphasis on the finish. Flaccianello was not produced in 1989 because that vintage saw constant rain showers and Fontodi sold off its fruit in bulk.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The 1988 Flaccianello della Pieve is the richest and most powerful of the wines of the 1980s. Dark cherries, flowers, mint, tobacco, licorice and worn-in leather are some of the many notes that flow from this broad-shouldered wine.
Old but silky. Quite light. (JR)
About the producer
Based just outside Panzano-in-Chianti, Chianti Classico estate Fontodi was acquired by the Manettis in 1968, a family which has established its modern reputation. Today the leading property is best known for its Flaccianello delle Pieve, the pure Sangiovese Super Tuscan first made in 1981.