Fontaleoni Vernaccia di San Gimignano DOCG 2022

Fontaleoni continues to fashion outstanding organically grown Vernaccia di San Gimignano, to which Fontaleoni’s 2022 Vernaccia di San Gimignano ably attests; Fontaleoni’s acumen with Tuscany’s quintessential white grape variety is second to none. Produced from 100% estate-grown Vernaccia di San Gimignano, the 2022 Fontaleoni Vernaccia di San Gimignano embodies all of this unique grape’s freshness, vitality, and hauntingly beautiful flavors. The wine sports a brilliant glow reflecting a combination of the soft green of the magical landscape surrounding the spired hill town of San Gimignano and the golden glow of the Tuscan sun. Fresh and highly aromatic, the 2022 Fontaleoni Vernaccia offers up an intoxicating aroma of vine-picked stone fruits, pear, and almond blossoms. In the mouth, pure and racy fruit melds with hints of raw almond and bergamot, all of which are infused with a gentle minerality, leaving the palate refreshed and the taster begging for more. Fontaleoni’s 2022 Vernaccia di San Gimignano will mature gracefully in bottle for at least two more years, but we found it hard to resist now. For optimal enjoyment, we suggest only moderate chilling (40º-45° F). Anticipated maturity: 2023-2026. Enjoy!

Although wonderfully fresh and delightful on its own as an aperitif, the flavorful 2022 Fontaleoni Vernaccia di San Gimignano pairs equally well with the delights of the table. Fontaleoni’s Vernaccia has the ability to enliven traditional Tuscan and international favorites alike. It provides a superb companion to fish and all kinds of seafood. Seared sea scallops with a ragout of cannelloni beans and crispy pancetta bacon; grilled trout with almonds and fresh green beans; and freshly shucked oysters broiled with garlic butter, Parmesan cheese and a dash of lime juice all provide excellent accompaniments to the Troianis’ classic Vernaccia di San Gimignano. A white pizza with rock shrimp, fresh ricotta, mozzarella, and arugula offers another fine pairing. Grilled vegetables, hors d’oeuvres, cream based pasta dishes, and hearty salads provide other opportunities to highlight the delicious organically grown 2022 Fontaleoni Vernaccia di San Gimignano. Buon Appetito!

Wine, food, and the traditional life of Tuscany are alive and well at the Azienda Agricola Fontaleoni. Here the Troiani family makes some of Tuscany’s finest wines, including the region’s most illustrious white wine, Vernaccia di San Gimignano. Just a few kilometers from the storied medieval towers of San Gimignano and the ancient town of Certaldo, the Troiani family has created a slice of heaven – a pastoral paradise that consists of 95 acres of grape vines and olive trees amidst a dreamland landscape.

From a hillside balcony that opens dramatically onto a panorama of hills, vines, and vast stretches of the magical, undulating land known as Chianti, the Fontaleoni estate slopes gently down from Antico Desco, the family’s traditional restaurant and bed and breakfast. The restaurant, located to one side of the family’s stone house, brings to life the glory of this mystical land by combining the flavors of Tuscan cuisine with the sincerity, authenticity, and warmth of the Troiani family. And, of course, the food and the atmosphere are both served with Fontaleoni’s excellent wines, which flow from the vines that grow just outside the terrace of the restaurant and the inn’s three beautifully appointed guest rooms. Here one can enjoy superb Tuscan food and wine amidst the tranquility of a fecund, starkly beautiful countryside, a land deftly sculptured by nature and the hand of man. To drink the cool, hauntingly beautiful Vernaccia di San Gimignano of Fontaleoni as the deep, haunting tones of light begin to spread across the nearby trees and vines, recalls Michelangelo’s moving scenes of creation on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. As Vernaccia di San Gimignano was a favorite of the De Medici family (Michelangelo’s patron) and, as some have claimed, of the artist himself, one has to wonder if Tuscany’s favorite son ever sojourned in these very hills. If so, it would explain the impetus for Michelangelo’s most famous work.

Fontaleoni produces five wines or “pearls” as the estate’s aficionados are fond of saying. Tuscany’s finest dry white wine Vernaccia di San Gimignano is Fontaleoni’s greatest claim to fame. Fontaleoni produces two estate bottled Vernaccia wines; both warrant DOCG status as Vernaccia di San Gimignano. The brightest and most traditional of these is this month’s feature. Other Fontaleoni wines include Vigna Casanova, an internationally styled white wine that combines 10% Chardonnay with the estate’s Vernaccia. Two delicious DOCG Chianti wines are also fashioned at Fontaleoni from the indigenous Sangiovese grapes.

At Fontaleoni one can enjoy the full realm of beauty that the ancient land of the Etruscans has to offer. Here there is abundance as well as solitude, and even more than a little magic. What else could one ask for?