San Felice
The tenuta of San Felice lies in the heart of of the Chianti Classico DOCG zone, within the commune of Castelnuovo Berardenga. The estate vineyards cover about 140 hectares, the majority of them offically approved for Chianti Classico DOCG production.
The climate on the plateau of San Felice is ideal, since the fairly limited annual rainfall encourages the vine roots to drive down in the earth to find nutrients and water in the reserves created deep in the rocky strata.
Soil quality is one of the primary considerations in the determination of where to plant a vineyard. San Felice possess two soil types. Soils of sedimentary origin are composed of medium-textured calcareous-marl clays with abundant pebble-gravel admixture; they hold water and air well, conditions ideal for the microorganisms that vines need for good development. These soils favour red grapes in particular, for the production of long-lived, well-structured wines. The alluvial type soils, on the other hand, are rich in pebbles and date to more recent geological periods. Ripening of the grapes generally occurs earlier in these soils, so they are suitable to younger-drinking wines, both red and white.
More than 70% of the estate vineyards are planted to sangiovese, but San Felice has added other native grapes over the years (such as colorino, currently the subject of experimental research), as well as the so-called “international varieties,” which have shown notable success in acclimatising to local conditions. Such varieties include not only cabernet sauvignon, merlot, and chardonnay, but sauvignon blanc too, which has acclimated extremely well to the San Felice terroirs.
The spur-pruned cordon is the principal vineyard training system at San Felice, particularly following the decision, made in the 1980s, that established high quality as the goal on which all of the winery’s efforts would be focused.
