Sangiovese: The Soul of the Tuscan Table

There are wines designed to impress from the first sip.

And then there are wines designed to make dinner better.

Sangiovese belongs firmly to the second group.

It is difficult to separate Sangiovese from the idea of the Tuscan table: a bowl of pasta with tomato and ragù, grilled meat, roast chicken, pecorino, salumi, mushrooms, olive oil and bread. These are not complicated combinations. They are simply foods and wines that have grown up alongside one another.

And perhaps that is the best way to understand Sangiovese.

Not as a grape that demands attention, but as one that seems to understand food.

A Grape Built for the Table

Sangiovese rarely relies on richness alone.

Its character comes from a combination of bright acidity, red fruit, savoury flavours and fine tannins. Cherry is often the first thing we notice, followed by raspberry, dried herbs, violet, earth, spice and sometimes something distinctly Tuscan — a combination of dust, leather and Mediterranean herbs that can be difficult to describe but immediately recognisable once you know it.

That acidity is important.

Put Sangiovese beside tomato, olive oil or a rich piece of meat and the wine suddenly makes sense. The acidity refreshes the palate, the tannins work with protein and the savoury character of the wine becomes part of the meal rather than something sitting separately in the glass.

It is one of the reasons a good Chianti can disappear remarkably quickly around a dinner table.

Tuscany Is Not One Sangiovese

Sangiovese may be Tuscany's defining red grape, but Tuscany itself is far from uniform.

Altitude, soil, exposure and winemaking can change the personality of the grape considerably.

Around Siena and San Gimignano, for example, Sangiovese can be generous, ripe and immediately inviting. The 2023 Poderi del Paradiso Chianti Colli Senesi is a wonderful example.

Made in the hills surrounding San Gimignano, it shows red cherry, raspberry, plum, violet and gentle spice with enough acidity and tannin to keep everything fresh. It is uncomplicated in the best possible sense: the sort of bottle you open with pizza, tomato-based pasta, roast chicken or grilled meat without needing a particular occasion.

Move into Chianti Classico, however, and the conversation becomes more detailed.

The hills between Florence and Siena contain enormous variation themselves, and Sangiovese is particularly good at revealing it.

The Many Faces of Chianti Classico

The 2022 Tenuta di Lilliano Chianti Classico comes from Castellina in Chianti, where the estate's vineyards include the limestone-rich Alberese soils so closely associated with the denomination.

Here Sangiovese becomes firmer and more structured.

Red cherry and raspberry are joined by dried herbs, violet, earthy notes and spice, while lively acidity and fine tannins give the wine the framework that makes traditional Chianti Classico such a dependable partner at the table.

There is enough structure for grilled meat, but also enough freshness for mushroom pasta, roast chicken or duck.

Then travel higher into the hills of Lamole, and Sangiovese changes again.

At I Fabbri, vineyards sit among the historic terraces of one of Chianti Classico's highest areas.

Cooler temperatures and sandy soils encourage slower ripening, and the resulting Sangiovese tends to favour perfume and finesse rather than weight.

The 2022 I Fabbri Chianti Classico is made entirely from Sangiovese and aged in concrete rather than oak, preserving its bright red fruit, violet perfume, chalky tannins and freshness.

Put it beside a bistecca Fiorentina and very little explanation is required.

The wine and the food do the talking.

Why Sangiovese Works So Well with Italian Food

Italian food rarely asks wine to overpower it.

Quite the opposite.

Tomato brings acidity. Parmesan and pecorino bring salt and umami. Olive oil brings richness. Herbs bring perfume. Meat brings fat and protein.

Sangiovese has an answer for almost all of them.

Its acidity matches tomato rather than fighting it. Its tannins respond beautifully to meat. Its savoury flavours sit naturally beside herbs, mushrooms and aged cheese.

This is why the classic pairings remain classics:

Chianti with ragù.
Sangiovese with bistecca.
Pizza with a young Tuscan red.
Pecorino with a more mature bottle.

They work not because someone wrote them into a wine textbook, but because generations of people discovered the combination around the dinner table.

Sangiovese Doesn't Need to Be Serious

The great wines of Tuscany can be profound.

But one of the pleasures of Sangiovese is that it doesn't always need to be.

There are bottles made for ageing and contemplation, and there are bottles meant to be opened on a Tuesday night because pasta is on the stove.

Both have their place.

In fact, understanding Sangiovese often begins with the simpler wines. A good Chianti teaches us the grape's acidity, red fruit and savoury character before the more serious expressions introduce greater structure, complexity and the influence of individual vineyards and places.

It is a grape worth exploring vertically as much as geographically.

Start with an easy-drinking Chianti Colli Senesi, move into a traditional Chianti Classico from Castellina, then compare it with the higher-altitude expression of I Fabbri in Lamole.

Same grape.

Same region.

Three very different conversations.

The Soul of the Tuscan Table

Perhaps that is why Sangiovese remains so compelling.

It doesn't need enormous concentration, excessive oak or dramatic power to make its point.

At its best, it tastes alive.

Red fruit. Herbs. Earth. Acidity. Tannin.

And an almost irresistible desire for another mouthful of food.

There are certainly greater occasions for wine.

But few better ones than a bottle of Sangiovese in the middle of a table, surrounded by food and people.

That is where the grape has always belonged.

And that is where it still makes the most sense.