Vintages
Drink, hold, or be careful.
Last fifteen years. Floor-staff calls, not scores. A modest year from a good grower beats a legend year from a lazy one.
- Drink
Open it. Waiting rarely helps.
- Hold
Too young for the typical bottle. Cellar it.
- Careful
Uneven or weak. Buy a grower, not the year — or drink up what you have.
Chianti Classico and Brunello
Tuscany
Sangiovese in the hills, Cabernet on the coast. Chianti is the weeknight; Brunello is the cellar.
Chianti Classico drinks years before Brunello (released in year five). Bolgheri Cabernet follows a Bordeaux clock.
| Year | Call | Character |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Hold | Too early. Chianti will show first. |
| 2024 | Careful | Mixed, wetter stretches. Buy names, not the year. |
| 2023 | Hold | Decent. Brunello is years from the shelf. |
| 2022 | Hold | Hot and dry. Concentration; wait on Brunello. |
| 2021 | Hold | Structured. Chianti Riserva still young. |
| 2020 | Drink | Warm. Everyday Chianti is open. |
| 2019 | Hold | Excellent across the hills. Brunello: patience. |
| 2018 | Drink | Fresh and ready. A friendly year. |
| 2017 | Drink | Hot. Drink the Chianti; don’t over-cellar. |
| 2016 | Hold | Outstanding. Brunello still climbing. |
| 2015 | Drink | Ripe and open, including much Brunello. |
| 2014 | Careful | Wet. Drink remaining bottles. |
| 2013 | Drink | Cooler, elegant, ready. |
| 2012 | Drink | Drought-year density, now open. |
| 2011 | Drink | Hot. Finish the cellar. |