Excellent wine. It's in a great drinking window. Balanced with fruit, acid, dark earthen texture. There was a touch of magic in this bottle: A spark of je ne sais quoi. Querciabella is one of the few 90 or so biodynamic vineyards of Italy. Always a joy to drink.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Day later from memory. Last bottle I had of this vintage, hauled out for my brother-in-law who visited the winery with me back in 2003. Dark color, substantial body, dark plummy fruit, with to me noticeable VA toward the finish, and very soft tannins. It was fun drinking this more for the memories than the pleasure, at least for me, although everyone else seemed to really like it. I wasn't going to say anything overtly negative, but suggested it was on the downhill slope of its lifespan and was basically told to shut up and drink. Always have a soft spot for Querciabella and this is not a criticism of the wine, just its age. No excuses: it was a flower day.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Took a long time for the reductive funk to wind down. Eventually dark cherry fruit, Port-like licorice and mature oak tannins. Sampled from a 375ml, so may not have aged as well.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
De loin meilleur que le 2007 bu récemment. Parfaitement à maturité, il a gardé sa fougue et se donne des petits airs de Brunello par sa structure et sa concentration. Très bon.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Berry and a bit of leathery earth on the nose. Big wine on the palate. Leathery berries and spice. with good acid. Good tannins though it's not very fine. Long finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Beau petit Chianti, frais et assez digeste. Le nez est sur les herbes, le cuir et un peu les cerises. En bouche, Cerises sures et anis. Tannins bien enrobés et finale de longeur moyenne.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
La robe montre peu de signe d'évolution. Relativement fermé à l'ouverture. Le nez évolue rapidement pour devenir après une heure une explosion de mûres, de fenouil et de violette avec une touche d'écurie. La bouche est ample, les tannins sont fondus, mais le vin a encore cette bonne mâche balancée par l'acidité des beaux chianti. Finale de longueur moyenne. Un très beau vin.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Picked this up from a wine store down the street. Decanted for about 4 hours. Smelled like an old barn yard. Never got much better. This was a bit flat. Tannic, earthy and not very complex. I did not taste any of the plum or cherry notes other reviewers mentioned. Perhaps this was a bit over. Very disappointing.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Very good Chianti with quite some length for a non riserva bottling. Nice cherries and violet in the bouquet. Hard to go wrong here, but prices have increased over the last years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
First half, decanted for 30+ minutes: Very good dark Chianti, fairly complex although not terribly refined, full of life and drinking superbly. Great food wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Vraiment un super-vin : cette bouteille a été bue dans la fenêtre idéale, il avait atteint un équilibre parfait. C'est sans aucun doute l'un des meilleurs (le meilleur ?) chianti classico "de base" que j'ai bu, certes dans un super millésime, mais tellement classieux, ouvert, épanoui. Un très bon souvenir.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Fairly dark. Medium wieght nose with a lot of secondary notes like cedar, leather, plums and earth. Nice black cherry and spice flavours and a perfectly resolved finish. A bit of a quick developer but I love it.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Not what I look for in a Chianti. Whiff of VA on popping the cork. Nose of ripe cherry and plum with more oak than needed. Bit of grainy tannins and mild acidity, neither as much as expected. Notes of brett emerged as the wine warmed and took on air. More ripe cherry, muddled with plum. My wife commented that this was a good wine if it was cheap. I would have rated it lower otherwise. I've had much better Querciabella. What happened here? I've got a couple more, so I hope this was an off bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dark, bright red. Beautiful nose of cherry, leather and earth. Medium wieght nose. Very rich fruit and cedar flavours. Nice long finish with soft tannins and the acid one would expect.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drank from 375 ml bottle (which has obviously accelerated the wine's development). Dark garnet with some ruby hues. Quite developed, mature nose, with red cherries, damp earth, olives and truffles. Mid-full bodied with very soft tanins, mature fruit and high acidity. Long finish. Still very nice although I prefered it one or two years ago (also drank from half-bottles).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I obviously don't try enough Chiantis. This is a revelation. Color is dark garnet with a hint of lightening at the rim. Nose shows expressive cherry, spice, leather, and a bit of earth. On the palate, I am struck with the tightly-wound, juicy berry note that hits right at the fore, then the palate expands into exotic spices, and an earthy component. All of this is framed by an authoritative amount of acid lending the wine a great structure. An excellent Chianti with real substance.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
A great wine. Fantastic nose with berry and earth, some leather. Balanced on the palate, with nice acidity and fine tannons with a nice long finish. Great Chianti for the price.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Ruby escuro. Intenso e profundo nos aromas com floral marcante, frutos vermelhos escuros e leve especiaria. Na boca tem corpo leve e sedoso com taninos finos, ótima acidez e belíssimo equilibrio. Um chianti que sem dúvidas está acima de média mesclando estrutura e elegância. Final médio a longo. Excelente/Excepcional.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Floral, alcaçuz e frutos vermelhos no nariz. Limpo, puro com alta acidez, taninos finos e muito equilibrio na boca. Incrivelmente elegante para um Chianti, ainda mais sendo clássico.Excepcional c/b. Final longo. Me pareceu superior ou pelo menos mais pronto do que o 2005. Excelente/Excepcional.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted for 1 hr. Nice, deep ruby color. Wonderful nose of earth and smoke. Nice red fruit on the palate with nice balance. Tannins were a bit harsh on the finish. Overall very solid, and a wonderful food wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
over '90' / under $30 (Wine Exchange): fresh strawbrries - puree, plum, berries, spicy blck pepper, olives, toasted oak, and an ocean breeze smell with a hint of smokiness. full bodied, ripe fruit, and firm tannins. 13.5% alcohol.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Deep ruby color. Nose of charcoal and turned earth with a floral topnote. On the palate it it also quite earthy with a good grip on the mid-palate, medium bodied and silky, with flavors of tart cherry. Quite elegant in a modern style.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Sangiovese (Orange, CA): Dark ruby-garnet. High-toned cherry and animal notes are overlaid a bit too much with sweaty saddle funkiness. Restrained and slow to unfold on the palate. This clearly has something going on, but what that is is not terribly attractive.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Drinks like an excellent CCR. Medium/full bodied, current and earth very notible. For the $16 I paid for it, I'm glad I have 6 more. Querciabella rarely disappoints, and here has hit the mark with their entry bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Plum, tomato, coffee, herbs... crisp, fresh and very pleasing... I've said it before and I'll say it again: it may be "just" chianti, but it's sure drinking great.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Absolutely my best bottle yet. Just firing in all regards. Could hardly believe this to be "just" Chianti Classico. Yummy. Or else I were just in a great mood.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Once Upon a Vine XIII - New Orleans, LA by Martin Wine Cellar (Pavillion of Two Sisters): Very Old World...............a decent nose & mouthful of horsey brett, dirt, leather, and almost a sage and mesquite flavor on the finish. Subtle cherry, currant and plummy fruit that is delicate but not quite balanced with the earthiness or acidity. This may become a little more harmonic over the next 4-6 years, but it may not. As another poster commented, this is very "Chianti", but isn't the example I would offer if I was trying to show someone how great Chainti can be.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Garnet in color, brett, red currant, plum, smoke and vanilla, nose, sweet palate which quickly turns to biting alcohol, medium finish with hints of fennel and earthy notes
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Nice deep red color. The nose is dominated by fresh red fruits: strawberries and tomatoes (well, not really a fruit...) with some hints of tuscan spices. It's medium-bodied with great definition. On the palate there's more red fruits, tomatoes, olives and garlic. It's juicy and with a good dense fruit, but all accompanied by a good vibrant acidity which makes this an excellent food wine. 89-90
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Deep dark garnet color. Elegant nose of cassis, cedar, bay leaf, pencil lead and spice. Full and rich on the palate but with a terrific sense of harmony. Fresh black fruits, fennel and spices flavors framed by juicy acids. The tannins come through n the finish to provide structure but they are fully ripe. Very Chianti and very un-Super Tuscan. Great deal and great value. Should be superb with 5 years or so.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
12/29/2018 - Fractalage Likes this wine: 93 Points
Excellent wine. It's in a great drinking window. Balanced with fruit, acid, dark earthen texture. There was a touch of magic in this bottle: A spark of je ne sais quoi.
Querciabella is one of the few 90 or so biodynamic vineyards of Italy. Always a joy to drink.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/18/2017 - bevetroppo Likes this wine: 88 Points
Day later from memory. Last bottle I had of this vintage, hauled out for my brother-in-law who visited the winery with me back in 2003. Dark color, substantial body, dark plummy fruit, with to me noticeable VA toward the finish, and very soft tannins. It was fun drinking this more for the memories than the pleasure, at least for me, although everyone else seemed to really like it. I wasn't going to say anything overtly negative, but suggested it was on the downhill slope of its lifespan and was basically told to shut up and drink. Always have a soft spot for Querciabella and this is not a criticism of the wine, just its age. No excuses: it was a flower day.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/23/2017 - pot20 wrote: 88 Points
Le fruit un peu plus en retrait que celui ouvert en 2015. Tout de même très solide. Un Chianti bien au dessus de la moyenne.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/16/2016 - juffer Likes this wine: 87 Points
Took a long time for the reductive funk to wind down. Eventually dark cherry fruit, Port-like licorice and mature oak tannins. Sampled from a 375ml, so may not have aged as well.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/30/2015 - ludwigbpm wrote: 91 Points
De loin meilleur que le 2007 bu récemment. Parfaitement à maturité, il a gardé sa fougue et se donne des petits airs de Brunello par sa structure et sa concentration. Très bon.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/30/2015 - pot20 wrote: 91 Points
Le meilleur CC bu dans cette catégorie. Bravo!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/12/2014 - rouge vin Likes this wine: 90 Points
Un des meilleurs Chianti bu depuis très longtemps.
Tout ce que l'appellation peut offrir de mieux.
Cuir sur le premier nez, poivre sur le second. Tannins et boisé bien présent, sans pour autant camoufler le fruité du vin.
J'adore...
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/23/2014 - jeremy@ Likes this wine: 91 Points
Drank over dinner at Cafe Grey @ Upper House.
Berry and a bit of leathery earth on the nose. Big wine on the palate. Leathery berries and spice. with good acid. Good tannins though it's not very fine. Long finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/17/2013 - maxima wrote: 88 Points
Beau petit Chianti, frais et assez digeste.
Le nez est sur les herbes, le cuir et un peu les cerises.
En bouche, Cerises sures et anis. Tannins bien enrobés et finale de longeur moyenne.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/4/2013 - pomelo Likes this wine: 91 Points
La robe montre peu de signe d'évolution. Relativement fermé à l'ouverture. Le nez évolue rapidement pour devenir après une heure une explosion de mûres, de fenouil et de violette avec une touche d'écurie. La bouche est ample, les tannins sont fondus, mais le vin a encore cette bonne mâche balancée par l'acidité des beaux chianti.
Finale de longueur moyenne. Un très beau vin.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/21/2013 - golby24 wrote: 89 Points
The wine looks Garnet colored.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/19/2013 - droseflowers wrote:
Picked this up from a wine store down the street. Decanted for about 4 hours. Smelled like an old barn yard. Never got much better. This was a bit flat. Tannic, earthy and not very complex. I did not taste any of the plum or cherry notes other reviewers mentioned. Perhaps this was a bit over. Very disappointing.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/2/2012 - Klugi Wine wrote: 89 Points
Very good Chianti with quite some length for a non riserva bottling. Nice cherries and violet in the bouquet.
Hard to go wrong here, but prices have increased over the last years.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/9/2012 - DK Amateur wrote:
First half, decanted for 30+ minutes: Very good dark Chianti, fairly complex although not terribly refined, full of life and drinking superbly. Great food wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/1/2012 - vinum bonum wrote:
Vraiment un super-vin : cette bouteille a été bue dans la fenêtre idéale, il avait atteint un équilibre parfait. C'est sans aucun doute l'un des meilleurs (le meilleur ?) chianti classico "de base" que j'ai bu, certes dans un super millésime, mais tellement classieux, ouvert, épanoui. Un très bon souvenir.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/29/2010 - David J Cooper wrote:
Fairly dark. Medium wieght nose with a lot of secondary notes like cedar, leather, plums and earth. Nice black cherry and spice flavours and a perfectly resolved finish. A bit of a quick developer but I love it.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/16/2010 - pape du neuf wrote: 85 Points
Not what I look for in a Chianti.
Whiff of VA on popping the cork. Nose of ripe cherry and plum with more oak than needed.
Bit of grainy tannins and mild acidity, neither as much as expected.
Notes of brett emerged as the wine warmed and took on air. More ripe cherry, muddled with plum.
My wife commented that this was a good wine if it was cheap. I would have rated it lower otherwise.
I've had much better Querciabella. What happened here? I've got a couple more, so I hope this was an off bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/2/2010 - David J Cooper wrote:
Dark, bright red. Beautiful nose of cherry, leather and earth. Medium wieght nose. Very rich fruit and cedar flavours. Nice long finish with soft tannins and the acid one would expect.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/7/2010 - Yiannis wrote: 90 Points
Drank from 375 ml bottle (which has obviously accelerated the wine's development). Dark garnet with some ruby hues. Quite developed, mature nose, with red cherries, damp earth, olives and truffles. Mid-full bodied with very soft tanins, mature fruit and high acidity. Long finish. Still very nice although I prefered it one or two years ago (also drank from half-bottles).
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/4/2009 - martcouz wrote: 91 Points
Animal. Tannins agréables et déja fondus. Très long en bouche. Noté troisième sur 5 vins lors de la verticale par le groupe de 8 dégustateurs.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/27/2008 - David J Cooper wrote:
Pretty dark red. Lots of cherries and some earthy notes. Nice flavours and lots of tannin and acid in the finish. Very dry.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/22/2008 - Thilo wrote: 92 Points
I obviously don't try enough Chiantis. This is a revelation. Color is dark garnet with a hint of lightening at the rim. Nose shows expressive cherry, spice, leather, and a bit of earth. On the palate, I am struck with the tightly-wound, juicy berry note that hits right at the fore, then the palate expands into exotic spices, and an earthy component. All of this is framed by an authoritative amount of acid lending the wine a great structure. An excellent Chianti with real substance.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/22/2008 - pandresgi@gmail.com wrote: 88 Points
A great wine. Fantastic nose with berry and earth, some leather. Balanced on the palate, with nice acidity and fine tannons with a nice long finish. Great Chianti for the price.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/13/2008 - losvinhos wrote: 91 Points
Ruby escuro. Intenso e profundo nos aromas com floral marcante, frutos vermelhos escuros e leve especiaria. Na boca tem corpo leve e sedoso com taninos finos, ótima acidez e belíssimo equilibrio. Um chianti que sem dúvidas está acima de média mesclando estrutura e elegância. Final médio a longo. Excelente/Excepcional.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/12/2008 - David J Cooper wrote:
Mediocre this time. Too bad maybe a bad bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/9/2008 - Bob Fyke wrote: 90 Points
Very nice CC. Dense garnet. Rich cherry, leather and soil. Acid and tannins present in nice quantity and balance. Excellent QPR.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/7/2008 - losvinhos wrote: 91 Points
Floral, alcaçuz e frutos vermelhos no nariz. Limpo, puro com alta acidez, taninos finos e muito equilibrio na boca. Incrivelmente elegante para um Chianti, ainda mais sendo clássico.Excepcional c/b. Final longo. Me pareceu superior ou pelo menos mais pronto do que o 2005. Excelente/Excepcional.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/31/2007 - Frommen wrote: 90 Points
Really nice cherry flavor. Well integrated wood. This is an excellent food-wine, a real nice experience!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/25/2007 - vinomand wrote:
A reminder of how good a Chianti Classico can be.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/8/2007 - jakearoe wrote: 90 Points
solid cc
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/16/2007 - keelegl wrote: 88 Points
Decanted for 1 hr. Nice, deep ruby color. Wonderful nose of earth and smoke. Nice red fruit on the palate with nice balance. Tannins were a bit harsh on the finish. Overall very solid, and a wonderful food wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/1/2007 - wcacern wrote: 90 Points
over '90' / under $30 (Wine Exchange): fresh strawbrries - puree, plum, berries, spicy blck pepper, olives, toasted oak, and an ocean breeze smell with a hint of smokiness. full bodied, ripe fruit, and firm tannins. 13.5% alcohol.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
8/19/2007 - dougsmith wrote: 90 Points
Deep ruby color. Nose of charcoal and turned earth with a floral topnote. On the palate it it also quite earthy with a good grip on the mid-palate, medium bodied and silky, with flavors of tart cherry. Quite elegant in a modern style.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/24/2007 - jakearoe wrote: 90 Points
Still Yummy, same as previous notes, other than very nice tannic feel on finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/14/2007 - tcfishler wrote: 87 Points
Sangiovese (Orange, CA): Dark ruby-garnet. High-toned cherry and animal notes are overlaid a bit too much with sweaty saddle funkiness. Restrained and slow to unfold on the palate. This clearly has something going on, but what that is is not terribly attractive.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/18/2007 - jakearoe wrote: 90 Points
Drinks like an excellent CCR. Medium/full bodied, current and earth very notible. For the $16 I paid for it, I'm glad I have 6 more. Querciabella rarely disappoints, and here has hit the mark with their entry bottle.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/30/2007 - gorm wrote: 91 Points
Plum, tomato, coffee, herbs... crisp, fresh and very pleasing... I've said it before and I'll say it again: it may be "just" chianti, but it's sure drinking great.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/21/2007 - gorm wrote: 92 Points
Absolutely my best bottle yet. Just firing in all regards. Could hardly believe this to be "just" Chianti Classico. Yummy. Or else I were just in a great mood.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/22/2007 - Jester wrote: 86 Points
Once Upon a Vine XIII - New Orleans, LA by Martin Wine Cellar (Pavillion of Two Sisters): Very Old World...............a decent nose & mouthful of horsey brett, dirt, leather, and almost a sage and mesquite flavor on the finish. Subtle cherry, currant and plummy fruit that is delicate but not quite balanced with the earthiness or acidity. This may become a little more harmonic over the next 4-6 years, but it may not. As another poster commented, this is very "Chianti", but isn't the example I would offer if I was trying to show someone how great Chainti can be.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/28/2007 - duchamp wrote: 88 Points
Garnet in color, brett, red currant, plum, smoke and vanilla, nose, sweet palate which quickly turns to biting alcohol, medium finish with hints of fennel and earthy notes
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/18/2006 - gorm wrote: 89 Points
Nice deep red color. The nose is dominated by fresh red fruits: strawberries and tomatoes (well, not really a fruit...) with some hints of tuscan spices. It's medium-bodied with great definition. On the palate there's more red fruits, tomatoes, olives and garlic. It's juicy and with a good dense fruit, but all accompanied by a good vibrant acidity which makes this an excellent food wine. 89-90
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/11/2006 - chefee1 wrote: 90 Points
Deep dark garnet color. Elegant nose of cassis, cedar, bay leaf, pencil lead and spice. Full and rich on the palate but with a terrific sense of harmony. Fresh black fruits, fennel and spices flavors framed by juicy acids. The tannins come through n the finish to provide structure but they are fully ripe. Very Chianti and very un-Super Tuscan. Great deal and great value. Should be superb with 5 years or so.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment