Cabernet Franc and Bouchet

Speaking of Sangiovese, I recently attended a tasting dinner featuring the wines of Banfi. The speaker, Sharron A. McCarthy, has been with Banfi for about 30 years and knows her stuff when it comes to their wines and vineyards.

She mentioned that there are approximately 600 clones of Sangiovese planted in the area from which Brunello di Montalcino comes. There really is no such thing as Sangiovese Grosso, per se. That merely refers in a general way to vines that produce the best Brunello - whatever clone they may be.

The Banfi folks did extensive research many years ago to determine which clones produced the best wines, and narrowed it down to three or so. That's what they've planted and have been making their wines from for the past 30 years or so. Interestingly, they shared the results of their research with the other producers in the area, at no charge. The reason for this apparent largess, she explained, was to improve the general quality and prestige of wines from Montalcino. This would obviously benefit Banfi as well.