Hailed by James Suckling as being “the champion of Sangiovese”, it would be hard to find a bad review of Fontodi. They are one of Italy’s favourite red wine producers and the Chianti Classico of preference for many a critic. Robert Parker gave the 2006 “extraordinary” status. Jancis Robinson is a fan who “loved” the 2015 and gave it 17/20. All vintages score consistently in the mid-high 90s. So we have to ask - does the Fontodi live up to its hype?

The Manetti family took over running of the Fondoti vineyards and estate in the late 1960s, deviating from their family’s terracotta tile business (Fontodi tiles are being used to restore Florence’s Duomo. They can also be found in the Botticelli room in the Uffizi.) The estate is 35-hectares, with 10-hectares in Panzano. In 1979 Dino Manetti asked his sons Giovanni and Marco, then aged just 16 and 19, to take over running the vineyard and winery. Under the guidance of renowned consultant Franco Bernabei, the boys managed the estate together whilst their father was continued the tile company. Twenty years later and the two businesses have fused, and today wines are aged in beautiful clay vases known as amphorae. Giovanni’s first amphorae vintage of pure Sangiovese, sulphite-free wine was made in 2012. He named it “Dino” after his father.

However, the king of all their Chiantis is unquestionably the Flaccianello and considered by many collectors as one of the best investible wine in Tuscany. This is because, from an investment point of view, Fontodi’s range of Chianti Classicos never miss the mark. And by that we mean never. While many Classico’s can seem anonymous, Fontodi strides ahead with its balance of ripe but fresh fruit and a tanginess that typifies a fine Chianti Classico. The soft tannins make for long ageing, which in turn offer a broad market appeal. Relatively inexpensive for a fine wine of this quality (approximately €100 per bottle although some of the better vintages are closer to €150) market growth is relatively slow but, like all the other aspects of this producer, constant.

Fontodi’s domestic market represents 23% of sales but their export market is enormous: 77% in 130 different countries. USA remains number one with 33% followed by Germany 12%, Canada 8% (the fastest growing), 5% Scandinavia, 4% UK, 3% Japan, 3% Switzerland.