The Trip through Italy continues with a recent pit-stop in Panzano in Chianti. Part of the reason for the visit here was to visit Enoteca Baldi, currently managed by Gianmaria Garbin (who spent at Grossi Florentino in Melbourne pre-Covid before moving home to his native Italy).
Enoteca Baldi is widely considered to have one of, if not the best wine list in the region. Naturally strong in all things Tuscan, it also boasts some of the great names of the wider world of wine.
Like in Piedmont, accommodation was again booked strategically close to our dinner spot (in fact we were staying next door) so we didn’t have far to go. Considering that, we decided to settle in…
A glass of Franciacorta proceeded a bottle of Champagne from cult grower Charles Dufour. I have been a Dufour fan for only two years, since first trying Bulles de Comptoir #10 in Spain in 2022. Other releases have followed, and previous releases have been tracked down (#9 a favourite) so seeing the newly released #12 on the list made choosing the wine easy.
This release follows the producer style very nicely. It has gentle oxidative notes that compliment rather than dominate the wine. It shows red apple/red apple skin, flakey, subtle pastry and a chiseled and very dry finish. Brilliant.
To follow, and to accompany our Tagliata, we landed on a bottle of Fuligni Brunello di Montalcino 2016. Sentiment was at play here, as I have fond memories of a visit to this producer way back in 2011 when I was last in the region.
By the end of the night we found the restaurant closed and empty, besides ourselves, Gianmaria and some staff at a table in the piazza and some more Champagne. All in all, a fantastic meal, only trumped by the wine list, the setting and the people.