San Donato in Poggio
Located along the western edge of the Chianti Classico zone, the San Donato in Poggio UGA, which takes its name from the village above which the photo in the first image was taken, can be described by referring first of all to its orography, or mountian geography.
Starting from the first image, we can see how the Pesa river and its valley represent a real physical border. To the north is the area of Badia a Passignano, which represents a sort of link between Santa Maria a Macerata (San Casciano UGA) and the Panzano UGA. Around the village and abbey of San Michele Arcangelo at Passignano (see second image) extend most of the area’s vineyards, ranging from the Pratale area, at the lower part of the slope, with soils more similar to those of San Casciano Val di Pesa, to the vineyards of Passignano itself where soils have more in common with those of the western side of Panzano.
Returning to the first image, and rotating it 180 degrees, the area to the southeast of the Pesa river differs in many way. It is much larger than the previous, including both the vineyards gravitating around the village of San Donato in Poggio and those of many other areas, of which only a part are visible. To the west, beyond the Firenze-Siena highway, lies the area of Cerbaia, to the southwest the hill of Cortine, while in the distance are Olena and Monsanto, the latter visible respectively and with more detail in the second and fourth image.
In the second image in particular, we see that in moving from Olena in a southerly direction there are many more significant extensions of vines, starting from Le Isole and Pianamici to Serelle. By rotating the fourth image by 180 degrees, we can observe Poggio di Macericca which, although less elevated than others, is easily identifiable from much of the territory, making it an important geographical reference because it precisely identifies the western border of the denomination. The slope observable in this image is that of Cinciano, characterized by a conspicuous spread of olive trees.
How to use
As simple and intuitive as the use of panoramic images may be, some clarifications and suggestions seem in order.
- The expression Unità Geografica Aggiuntiva (UGA) applies to a specific and precisely delimited area within the Chianti Classico denomination. Some UGAs correspond to an entire commune, others to a portion of one, others result from the unification of parts of two communes.
- When a UGA corresponds to the area of a single commune, the name of the UGA has been shortened (San Casciano in Val di Pesa becomes simply San Casciano) or the use of the specification “in Chianti” has been avoided to avert useless repetitions on wine labels. Gaiole in Chianti becomes Gaiole, and Panzano in Chianti, which is not a commune, becomes Panzano. The names of Castelnuovo Berardenga, a commune, and San Donato in Poggio, which like Panzano is not a commune but a hamlet, remain unchanged.
- At the moment the use of UGA is foreseen only for Chianti Classico Gran Selezione wines.
- Coming now to the introductions to each UGA, the greater or lesser number of images used in the virtual tours depends on the overall shape and size of their territories. Some can be illustrated with few images and others require more detail. It follows that the different number of images in no way implies a difference in importance of one UGA with respect to another.
- To navigate between the different images within each tour, use the thumbnails below, above the command bar. To rotate the images to the right or left, drag them with the mouse or with your fingers, if you are using a phone or a tablet.
- In each image you will find names that identify geographical references and/or toponyms. Use them to orient yourself as you move from one panorama to another.
The colors used for the different names have three different functions. In white are the names of farms and villages within the Chianti Classico DOCG. In red are the names of communes, hamlets, mountains and hillocks within the same borders. In blue are the names of places located outside the territory of Chianti Classico DOCG. Some of them, such as mountains and hills, have been inserted to contextualize Chianti Classico with respect to other areas of Tuscany that many users will already know. - The recognized UGAs within the production zone of the Chianti Classico appellation are eleven. Starting from northwest and, moving generally clockwise, they are: San Casciano, Greve, Lamole, Montefioralle, Panzano, Radda, Gaiole, Castelnuovo Berardenga, Vagliagli, Castellina and San Donato in Poggio.
