2012 Palafreno

I was super-impressed with the wines I tasted at Querciabella this year. Kudos to proprietor Sebastiano Cossia Castiglioni, who has spared no expense in meaningfully raising the bar at Querciabella, especially over the last few years. Two thousand thirteen yielded a bevy of strong wines, from the sublime Chianti Classico Querciabella to the new single-village Sangioveses. Castiglioni has been an ardent opponent of the Gran Selezione and the politics that are necessarily a part of getting things done in Italy, but it now appears possible the 2013 Sangioveses may be released as Gran Seleziones if the villages of origin can be included on the labels. That would be a huge change in position for a man who is not shy about expressing his views on everything from wine to animal rights.