Vinsanto
⏳ Drinking Window
2022 - 2035
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Classic Tuscan almond biscotti (cantucci) for dipping, aged Pecorino Toscano cheese served with chestnut honey, and rich chicken liver pâté (crostini toscani).
✨ Technical Specifications
The Frescobaldi family has been at the forefront of Tuscan winemaking for over 700 years, and their Vinsanto represents one of the region's most sacred liquid treasures. The name 'Vin Santo' (Holy Wine) is steeped in folklore, with legends tracing it back to the Middle Ages when the wine was used for Holy Communion, or when a Franciscan friar used the sacramental wine to cure plague victims. Crafted using the traditional appassimento method, hand-harvested grapes—typically Trebbiano Toscano and Malvasia Bianca Lunga, or Sangiovese for the rare red 'Occhio di Pernice' style—are carefully hung on rafters or laid on straw mats in well-ventilated rooms to dry for several months. This slow drying concentrates the sugars and flavors. The precious juice is then fermented and aged for years in 'caratelli' (small wooden barrels) sealed with wax and stored in the 'vinsantaia' (attic), where they are subjected to the extreme temperature fluctuations of the Tuscan seasons. This rigorous, oxidative aging process yields a complex, amber-hued nectar rich with aromas of dried apricot, honey, toasted hazelnuts, and warm baking spices.
🍾 About the Producer
Tracing its viticultural origins to 1308, Marchesi Frescobaldi is an iconic Florentine noble dynasty that has shaped Tuscan winemaking across thirty generations. Spanning celebrated historical holdings—including Castello Nipozzano in Chianti Rùfina, Castello Pomino, Tenuta Castiglioni, CastelGiocondo in Montalcino, and the social viticulture initiative on the penal island of Gorgona—the family stewards diverse terroirs ranging from galestro-rich hills to cool-climate Apennine elevations. Frescobaldi practices certified sustainable viticulture under Tuscany's AgriQualità protocol, tailoring canopy management and soil stewardship to site-specific conditions. In the cellar, their philosophy honors regional typicity while embracing technical precision, vinifying with calibrated temperature control and aging across fine-grained oak barriques and traditional casks. The portfolio showcases an expansive spectrum of expressions: high-elevation Chardonnay and Pinot Nero in the pioneering Pomino Benefizio Riserva and Leonia Brut sparkling wines, mineral-driven Ansonica-Vermentino field blends from Gorgona, alongside age-worthy, structured Sangiovese icons such as Nipozzano Riserva and CastelGiocondo Brunello di Montalcino.