Isola delle Falcole Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Le Falcole 2020

Dubbed as "an exciting property to watch" by Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate, Isola delle Falcole is a small, artisan producer in Chianti that is making some serious waves as a hot, new commodity on the Tuscan wine scene. 96 points and the absolute best price in the USA makes this an absolute score that you simply cannot miss! 

Isola delle Falcole is a joint project between three long-time friends, headed up by Emanuele Graetz – who just might be the best guy to know in Italy. He’s the cousin of the wildly famous Bibi Graetz – the impassioned artist turned vigneron whose Testamatta wines have turned Tuscany on its head over the last several years. And yet, Ema hails from a decidedly different world – scratching, grinding, and building his wine business from the ground up in a small garage winery on the road from Panzano, with the sort of hustle and hard work that gives him an almost omnipresent aura. If you work in wine, anywhere from Italy to Champagne – Ema probably knows who you are. The Wine Advocate's Monica Larner summed up the promise of this burgeoning estate rather nicely, saying, "Despite [these] humble beginnings, the team is making very exciting wines. This is another under-the-radar estate to keep an eye on."

We couldn't agree more. And though he’s helped us score everything from Biondi Santi to rising star Grower Champagne – it is his own label of Isola delle Falcole that perhaps gave us our biggest surprise of all. We first tasted this rare and expressive 2020 Gran Selezione Le Falcole (the falcon) in a fully blind tasting with two other highly notable Chianti producers – Montevertine’s iconic Le Pergole Torte (a long-time personal favorite, usually ~$250+) and the legendary Flaccianello della Pieve (~$200+). Six wines in total, with each producer’s 2019 and 2020 vintages. In a tasting such as this – it isn’t so much about what fantastic wine is the absolute best – but rather...do these wines do justice to the sangiovese grape, and express in full their exceptional terroirs, providing a value and experience that goes beyond the price of their bottles? And, my word, did Le Falcole ever answer! At just around 200 cases made in total, this is far rarer than either of those two cult-classic Chiantis – and at our unbelievable price – easily the better value in the bunch! Currently, the tiny production (they've only been making wine a few years now) makes this far too small to find this far and wide, but expect great things from this rising star – and grab as much as you can while the pricing is favorable!

I even preferred the 2020 vintage we have today over the 2019 – which was, by most accounts, the better vintage for Tuscany as a whole. Ema says this 2020 vintage has a bit of magic in it – thanks largely to the global pandemic. Travel restrictions brought clearer air to the region, as well as the time (distraction?) necessary to focus on every whim of their vineyards directly. It was also the first time that Ema opted to not use the winery’s ancient basket press (predominantly due to him almost losing a hand to the contraption the year prior) – allowing a particular elegance to the wine that has caused them to forego such pressing in all vintages since. Finally, the birth of his first child, Ettore, added the final feather in the cap to make this 2020 something altogether special – both for the winery and any fortunate enough to taste it.

“Gran Selezione” is the new focus for many top Chianti growers – a sort of codifying of the IGT status that many iconic producers (such as Le Pergole and Flaccianello) adopted years ago when Chianti Classico refused to allow 100% sangiovese wines in the DOCG classification – despite these wines being the champions and flagships of so many estates. The correction was made official in 2014, with Gran Selezione becoming Chianti’s new classification above Riserva, made using grapes harvested only from the winery’s own vineyards, with upgraded quality requirements and practices implemented such as a minimum of 30 months aging prior to bottling. Only about 8 or 9% of the region’s wines qualify for this newest tier – and the quality here is exceptional!

Deeply rich and mineral – thanks to the prized “galestro” schist and clay sediment in the vineyards that are tucked between the villages of Panzano and Montefioralle – this is impeccably layered with sensations of black cherries, blackberries, and blueberries, with explosive punctuations of red roses, violets, graphite, fresh pipe tobacco, and sandalwood. A spine of iron-laden structure, with zippy acidity, and warm, roasted herbs carries this into a long and velvety finish, with enough bite to guarantee that this youthful beauty is only going to increase in quality over the next decade plus. An hour in the decanter, with some vigorous swirling does wonders, but even with its bright future – this is mighty tempting to enjoy in the here and now! 96 points and over $65 off makes this too tempting to ignore – and this is certainly assured to be one of our “Must Try” wines of 2025. Give it a go – you’ll be thankful you did!

PAIRING IDEAS: I first had this with an impressively large “Bisteca alla Fiortina” – an extra thick, Porterhouse-cut steak grilled over an open flame, and finished with some excellent olive oil and some flaky sea salt. I can’t think of why I’d ever have this with anything else!