Badia a Coltibuono back to 1965

“I’m a real Chianti girl”, proudly claimed Emanuela Stucchi Prinetti, owner of highly acclaimed Tuscan estate Badia a Coltibuono. Dressed all in black, with dark hair pulled back, this striking Italian woman led us through an equally impressive vertical tasting of her Chianti Classico Riservas ranging from 1965 to 2005.

Of the 2008 harvest, which had just started the day before, on 29 Sep, she reported, “It’s a very early harvest this year, following a season of extremes. The mild winter left the ground warmer than usual. As soon as spring came along, the vines just shot up, developing much...