2013 Pàcina, Il Secondo, IGT Toscana Rosso, (Castelnuovo Beradenga), (Chianti Classico), Italy.
The pure, dark hued and earthy Il Secondo, or “Donesco” IGT Rosso 2013 by Pàcina is a blend of 95% Sangiovese, 3% Canaiolo and 2% Ciliegiolo that is sourced from younger vines, around ten years of age, and is aged exclusively vat, mainly in cement tanks with some getting inox (stainless) depending on the vintage. A wonderfully mature full bodied palate shows of old school and raw Sangiovese character with brandied cherry, plum, brambleberry and reduced strawberry fruits, along with sous bois, tobacco, bay leaf, truffle, dried rose petals, minty herbs and leathery savory elements. The recent history of Pàcina starts in the 1960s with Enzo Tiezzi, a professor at the University of Siena, started living at the property and helped pioneer sustainable eco friendly wine growing in the region. Pàcina is located on the southern slopes of the Chianti hills where the soil, is what they call, the ‘Tufo di Siena’ which is chalk laced and typical of the area. This soil was deposited from prehistoric seas that covered the landscape during the Pliocene period and were, as the winery says, deposited about 5 million years ago. It is a predominantly sandy terrain of rolling hills with a warm southern exposure, which also contains, not just the mentioned limestone, but clay and small rounded pebbles known locally as “ciottoli” whose characteristic shape was moulded by the oscillation of the sea-waves and the flux of river water running off the hills. This is one of the most distinctive terroirs of the Chianti Classico zone and makes for beautifully age worthy tannic Sangiovese based wines with deep color and richness of palate, while retaining enough natural acidity to stay remarkably fresh in detail. Pàcina’s lineup is mainly native varietals, expressed naturally, though they do have some Syrah planted here as wetland that gets blended into a special bottling of “La Malena” that comprises 80% Ciliegiolo and 20% Syrah from a small parcel that was planted in 1993, making for a very unique wine.
Pàcina, the ancient Etruscan name for the god of wine, is an all natural estate in the Castelnouvo Beradenga area of Chianti Classico set in rolling hills not far from Siena and the site of an ancient Monastery that was founded around 900 A.D. Pàcina is now led by fifth generation winegrower Giovanna Tiezzi and her husband Stefano Borsa who continue the traditions of the Tiezzi family with organic farming and natural winemaking. The 60 hectares of the estate in Chianti Classico sees 10 hectares of cultivated vines, with the remainder being untouched woods, heritage grains, olive groves for pure Tuscan extra virgin oil and orchards. Like some of the other natural wine producers in Chianti Classico, Pàcina is, as the winery says, a story of stubborn passion for the sincerity and purity of their wines, to the point of renouncing, in 2008, of the Chianti Classico DOCG appellation, because their wines did not conform to, at the time, the internationalized standards of the panel. The Pàcina Chianti Classicos were also released a full 5 years after harvest and not the prescribed 2, so they are now labeled as IGT Toscano Rosso(s). The signature wine of the estate is the Pàcina Rosso, from old vines, with much the same make up of this Il Secondo bottling, usually a blend of 95% Sangiovese and small parts Ciliegiolo and Canaiolo, which also get solo varietal bottlings here. This top wine is fermented in cement and then spends 3 full years in a combination of large Slavonian casks, old 500-liter barrels, and cement vats, with no fining or filtering and ultra low sulfur. It’s a wine I look forward to trying soon, but this seductive and sultry Il Secondo is well worth chasing down itself, as this well aged 2013 shows. They, Pàcina, imported by Rosenthal Wine Merchants now, also produce a ripe and dark Rosé or Rosato, that is made from the free-run juice of a single tank of Sangiovese, which ferments naturally in concrete and spends 12 months in well-used 500-liter barrels, an additional wine to look for.
($34 Est.) 92 Points, grapelive