Il Molino di Grace is nestled in the hills of Panzano in Chianti. The entire Panzano area must be organically farmed, so Il Molino di Grace is organic, and we can rest assured that no chemicals from neighbors are leaching onto the vineyards either.
Pictured above, a large statue of Saint Francis of Assisi watches over the vineyards, holding up a sun and a moon, seemingly invoking his famous canticle "Brother Sun, Sister Moon."
"Il Molino di Grace" translates to "The Windmill of Grace." A windmill marks the winery (see left) and the family that owns the winery has the last name of... Grace.
This sculpture sits just outside the winery door, and this same image graces the labels on each bottle.
The Wines:
Il Volano white wine 2007
30% malvasia- estate vineyards
40% chardonnay- sourced from a nearby friend
30% trebbiano- estate vineyards
This wine sees steel only. It's pretty interesting; aromas of sweet spices and fresh spring flowers. Tasted like starfruit and tart honeydew.
Il Volano red wine 2007
75% sangiovese
25% merlot
These sangiovese grapes come from their youngest vineyard. The wine has a very pregnant aroma of bright red fruit. This is a quaffing, entry-level sangiovese, with some merlot used to flesh it out. I wonder if this is an experiment for a future Super Tuscan idea that might be in the works.
Il Molino di Grace - Chianti Classico 2006
100% sangiovese
winemaking: aged 11 month in steel, barrique and large barrels.
The aromas are fresh, bright red fruit with some toasty oak notes, plus hints of leather that would most likely become more prominent with age. On the palate the fruit, tannin and acidity are all bursting and well balanced against one another.
Il Molino di Grace - Chianti Classico Riserva 2005
these grapes are sourced from the older vineyards-- 40-45 year old vines. When they started making wine from this plot they drastically cut production by about 45% in order to increase the quality of the grapes.
winemaking: aged 11 month in Slovenian oak, some new French oak, and some neutral 2nd & 3rd year barriques.
This wine has a baseline of black fruit, mingled with red fruits, a hint of herbaceousness, and some vanilla-anise aromas from the new French oak.
Il Molino di Grace - "Selezione Il Margone" Chianti Classico Riserva 2004
100% sangiovese
these grapes are sourced from the same 40-45 year old vines of the riserva, but this bottling is a selection of the best grape bunches from that plot.
winemaking: 100% French oak (50% new)
The aroma is oak driven- clear and focused vanilla and anise with lush supporting fruits. On the palate this has a complex fruit expression (red/black, ripe/unripe) that is in balance with the oak treatment, the acidity is more intense than in the previous wines and there are heavy, no-nonsense tannins.
Il Molino di Grace - "Gratius"
100% sangiovesethese grapes come from their oldest vines 400 meters above sea level in very steep and late-ripening vineyards. This plot always ripens much later than the rest of the property, and they harvest on average in mid-October.
The aroma is extremely intense-- lots of black fruit, spicy & complex; an earthyness that reminds me of Bordeaux.
Il Volano white wine 2007
30% malvasia- estate vineyards
40% chardonnay- sourced from a nearby friend
30% trebbiano- estate vineyards
This wine sees steel only. It's pretty interesting; aromas of sweet spices and fresh spring flowers. Tasted like starfruit and tart honeydew.
Il Volano red wine 2007
75% sangiovese
25% merlot
These sangiovese grapes come from their youngest vineyard. The wine has a very pregnant aroma of bright red fruit. This is a quaffing, entry-level sangiovese, with some merlot used to flesh it out. I wonder if this is an experiment for a future Super Tuscan idea that might be in the works.
Il Molino di Grace - Chianti Classico 2006
100% sangiovese
winemaking: aged 11 month in steel, barrique and large barrels.
The aromas are fresh, bright red fruit with some toasty oak notes, plus hints of leather that would most likely become more prominent with age. On the palate the fruit, tannin and acidity are all bursting and well balanced against one another.
Il Molino di Grace - Chianti Classico Riserva 2005
these grapes are sourced from the older vineyards-- 40-45 year old vines. When they started making wine from this plot they drastically cut production by about 45% in order to increase the quality of the grapes.
winemaking: aged 11 month in Slovenian oak, some new French oak, and some neutral 2nd & 3rd year barriques.
This wine has a baseline of black fruit, mingled with red fruits, a hint of herbaceousness, and some vanilla-anise aromas from the new French oak.
Il Molino di Grace - "Selezione Il Margone" Chianti Classico Riserva 2004
100% sangiovese
these grapes are sourced from the same 40-45 year old vines of the riserva, but this bottling is a selection of the best grape bunches from that plot.
winemaking: 100% French oak (50% new)
The aroma is oak driven- clear and focused vanilla and anise with lush supporting fruits. On the palate this has a complex fruit expression (red/black, ripe/unripe) that is in balance with the oak treatment, the acidity is more intense than in the previous wines and there are heavy, no-nonsense tannins.
Il Molino di Grace - "Gratius"
100% sangiovesethese grapes come from their oldest vines 400 meters above sea level in very steep and late-ripening vineyards. This plot always ripens much later than the rest of the property, and they harvest on average in mid-October.
The aroma is extremely intense-- lots of black fruit, spicy & complex; an earthyness that reminds me of Bordeaux.
This cellar, and one other room with large barrels (see photo below) house the aging reds. As you can see by the size of the cellar, production is medium-small.
Here are some of the larger barrels for the wines that demand more neutral aging. I left my friend Karin & I in the photo to give you an idea of the size of the barrels.
Here we have a brand new pristine, in-house automated bottling line. I've noticed that this is part of a larger trend. Many wineries are switching to in house bottling lines; it's a bit of a high cost at first, but in the long term it makes things much easier-- you don't have to transport barrels and wines over distance in possible heat to a different facility, you keep oxidation and heat damage at an absolute minimum, and the winemaker keeps that sense of control over the quality of the product through to the final step.
On an unrelated side note: if you go to Panzano in Chianti you've got to have dinner at Il Vescovino-- try to catch the sunset on the patio!
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