The Badiòla site is located high up in Radda in Chianti, at 500-570m on sandstone and galestro, with some alberese also present on the lower section of the vineyard: ‘A synthesis of the three main soils of the area,’ commented managing director, Filippo Mazzei. This vineyard used to belong to the family until it was sold in the 1940s, only to be bought back in the mid-1990s and replanted with select clones of Sangiovese. Vinified in stainless steel conical vats with 17 days of maceration, it's then matured for 16 months in 500l French oak barrels (30% new) and finished for five months in concrete tanks. The open, fragrant nose expresses earthy black and red cherries with floral perfume and a touch of balsam. In the mouth it's creamy and intense, combining peppery spice with beautifully precise and tangy black and red cherries and blackberries. Ripe and fresh with a balsamic vein running through it, this is a superbly balanced Sangiovese which speaks of its place. 7,500 bottles produced. (Drink between 2023-2034)

You're never far away from a wine named after a church in Tuscany, and this beautiful single-vineyard Sangiovese from Mazzei has a church of the same name just by the plot, which sits at 570m altitude on schist and sandstone soils. 3 clones of Sangiovese with 3 massal selections - less than the other Gran Seleziones because this plot is higher, and so needs careful attention for full ripening. It's a beautiful wine, elegant and finessed, studded with orange peel, cranberry and wild strawberry notes. First vintage 2017, 30% new oak, 500l barrels, for ageing.

The 2019 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Badiola is finessed with red cherry candy, medicinal herbs, and fresh forest floor. The purity in its aromas is followed by a medium-bodied palate with pleasurable ripeness and approachable tannins. With a light iron-rich and mineral character as well as notes of dried herbs and raspberry seed, this clean and joyful wine has an ease about it now that is hard to resist. Drink 2023-2033.- ML

This 2019 Mazzei Castello di Fonterutoli Chianti Classico Badiola Gran Selezione is softly sweet and fragrant with enticing aromas on the nose, cream and spice beautifully interwoven with little bright cherry notes that are both elegant and persistent. It has a beautifully harmonious palate but is a little fragile in terms of the fruit concentration but it has a lovely character with an intense acidity, giving a bright, fresh lingering finish. I always love the purity, harmony and delicacy of this expression of Radda. The 2019 vintage puts its stamp on the wine with a certain vibrant juiciness and lightness of touch. This wine has a vibrant, elegant, finessed style and it is persistent and fragrant in the glass. Drink 2022-2032.

A firmly built red marked by enticing aromas and flavors of cherry, plum, eucalyptus, leather and iron. Balanced and pure, just needs a few more years to find nice equilibrium between all the components. Long, spice-tinged finish. Best from 2025 through 2043. - BS