The 2020 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Castello di Ama San Lorenzo is fabulous. It offers up a compelling mix of blackberry, graphite, crushed rocks, spice, lavender and black pepper, showing striking inner sweetness, gorgeous mid-palate pliancy and mid-blowing balance, all in a medium-bodied style that will be approachable with minimal cellaring. San Lorenzo remains an archetype for contemporary Chianti Classico. Production is down about 30% in 2020 because of stringent selection.

A ripe style, boasting plum, blackberry and pomegranate flavors, shaded by iron, wild herbs and spice accents. Linear, despite the luscious fruit, with a firm underpinning of tannins lining the extended finish. Sangiovese and Merlot. Best from 2026 through 2043.

Made with a selection of the best estate Sangiovese (with a hint of Merlot and Malvasia Nera) from across various parcels, the Castello di Ama 2020 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione San Lorenzo is chiseled and dark with a through-line of dark mineral and crushed rock. That dry mineral note forms a precise frame around dark fruit and oak spice. The wine has drying tannins and a long, polished finish.