Lamole and Lucolena sit on the eastern edge of Greve in Chianti, on the slopes of the Monti del Chianti, where Chianti Classico climbs higher than almost anywhere else. Castellaccio's eleven hectares run from 500 to 700 metres, and its top parcel is often described as the highest vineyard in the whole denomination. Up here Sangiovese ripens slowly and keeps its acidity: the wines come out lifted, savoury and transparent rather than dark and dense.
The two villages face each other across Monte San Michele, and the ground changes with the slope. Lamole is known for sandy, free-draining soils weathered from the local sandstone, macigno, many of them on old dry-stone terraces; Lucolena has more schistous, stony ground. Quartz runs through both. Constant ventilation and cool nights do the rest. That is why the estate's single slopes taste so different: Lama dell'Araldo comes from a sunny southwest-facing site in Lamole, while its sister wine Lama della Rinascita comes from a cooler, wetter northeast slope in Lucolena.
Sangiovese is the backbone of Chianti, but the old recipe was never Sangiovese alone. From Bettino Ricasoli's formula in the nineteenth century, Chianti also included the white grapes Trebbiano and Malvasia, which softened the tannins and lifted the aromatics. White grapes were removed from Chianti Classico from the 2006 vintage. Lennino keeps that older idea alive: about 70% Sangiovese with 30% Trebbiano and Malvasia, bottled as Toscana IGT because the blend is no longer allowed under the DOCG.
Davide Bottai belongs to a family that farmed here for generations but sold its grapes in bulk. The farm went organic in 2013, at his grandfather's wish; Davide turned it towards estate bottling and a low-intervention cellar. Fermentations start spontaneously in concrete, the Chianti Classico macerates for about 30 days, and ageing happens in large old 25-hectolitre casks, tonneaux or neutral barrels, never new oak. The aim is wine that shows the altitude and the soil, not the cellar.
What ties the range together is a mountain signature: crunchy red cherry and redcurrant, a wild-mint note often linked to Lamole, a salty, mineral edge and tannins that are present but fine. Serve them a little cooler than a typical Chianti and put them on the table with food; they are made to be drunk, not admired.
