Very intense blackberries and spice with some earth and violets. Really complex. Full-bodied with layers of ripe tannins, yet they are firm and formed. Shows how well this cool area does in a hot vintage. Attractive now, but needs time to open. Try after 2023.

The 2016 Chianti Rufina Vigneto Bucerchiale is a dark, brooding wine. Swaths of tannin make a first impression. Gradually, black cherry, plum, lavender, cloves, leather and menthol start to emerge. This potent, massively tannic Chianti Rufina is going to need a number of years to come around. There is plenty of depth, but the elements are totally put together. The 2016 finishes with tremendous substance and gravitas. I expect the 2016 will always remain a brute.

The 2016 Chianti Rùfina Vigneto Bucerchiale is a real standout. 
A wine of vertical explosiveness and energy, the 2016 Bucerchiale is deep, wonderfully defined and full of nuance. Macerated cherry, kirsch, sweet tobacco, licorice, menthol, chocolate and spice abound in this super-expressive, nuanced Chianti Rùfina. Expressive savory notes add the closing shades of nuance.
This is a such a gorgeous and complete wine.

In 1998, the Giuntini family purchased a new property in the Chianti Rufina wine region.  In 1999 they planted six hectares (14.8 acres) of Sangiovese cuttings from grapevines selected from their Bucerchiale vineyard, as well as other indigenous vines and olive trees.  The vineyard, like all Selvapiana vineyards, is farmed organically.  The wine is made solely from Sangiovese, fermented with indigenous yeasts, aged in French oak barriques for 18 months and spends one year in bottle before release.  It is an impressive wine with aromas of red cherries, dried woody herbs, blood orange and a touch of vanilla that pave the way for vivid flavors of red cherries, red currant, with notes of pipe tobacco and a whiff of dried mushroom. The ripeness of the fruit is balanced with zesty acidity and dusty tannins.        

Fattoria Selvapiana is one of Rùfina's modest superstars, defined by its very low-key profile and red wines that combine generously free-flowing fruit and faultless terroir expression. The lovely light tang in every sip stems from a mix of clay-limestone that provides fatness and juiciness, while schist or galestro engenders underlying depth. Organic.

Chianti Rufina 2018 is the least expensive ($19), the easiest to enjoy, and the readiest to drink.  Its nose is surprisingly fruity and vibrant for a Chianti; it suggests fresh red cherries, dried herbs, fresh mint and thyme, and licorice.  In your mouth, the wine is dry and medium-bodied, a light-ish red with a spine of acidity and just a medium amount of tannin, with fruity flavors similar to its aromas. A noteworthy aspect of this wine is how well it “hangs” in your mouth — fruitiness in the front, acidity up the middle and a combination of fruitiness and textured tannin in the back. It’s a complete wine that delivers all across your mouth. Did I mention the price? Despite these connotations of “lesser than,” it’s the wine I really want to drink, especially now, in July.  

The newest wine in the Selvapiana lineup. When Selvapiana’s owners, the Giuntini family, purchased this land in 1999, it was the first purchase they had made since 1897. 2016 is the first release from this vineyard. On the nose, this wine is complex but tight, showing savory mineral notes that combine with concentrated red cherry, spicy oak and woodsy herbal hints.  After that tight nose, the wine seems surprisingly rich in flavor when it enters your mouth, all dark berry fruit but in a truly dry wine, not at all the sort of rich, fruity flavor many wine drinkers might be accustomed to. The wine has high acidity and an abundant amount of velvety tannin, but not enough tannin to overwhelm that fruit.  Again, there’s balance happening here between the aromatics and the structure.