Chianti (), in Italy also referred to as Monti del Chianti ("Chianti Mountains") or Colline del Chianti ("Chianti Hills"), is a mountainous area of

Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...

in the provinces of

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centur ...

and Arezzo, composed mainly of hills and mountains. It is known for the wine produced in and named for the region,

Chianti A Chianti wine (, also , ) is any wine produced in the Chianti region of central Tuscany. It was historically associated with a squat bottle enclosed in a straw basket, called a ''fiasco'' ("flask"; ''pl. fiaschi''). However, the ''fiasco'' is ...

History

The territory of Chianti was initially limited, in the thirteenth century, by the municipalities of

Gaiole in Chianti Gaiole in Chianti is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Siena in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about northeast of Siena. ''Forbes'' named it number one in its list of "Europe's Most Idyllic Pla ...

, Radda in Chianti and Castellina in Chianti and thus defined the "Chianti League" (Lega di Chianti).

Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany Cosimo III de' Medici (14 August 1642 – 31 October 1723) was Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1670 until his death in 1723, the sixth and penultimate from the House of Medici. He reigned from 1670 to 1723, and was the elder son of Grand Duke Ferdina ...

, even decided in 1716 to issue an edict in which he officially recognized the boundaries of the Chianti district, which was the first legal document in the world to define a wine production area. The villages of Chianti are often characterized by Romanesque churches and fortified medieval castles, signs of the ancient wars between Siena and Florence or as

Monteriggioni Monteriggioni is a ''comune'' in the province of Siena in the Italian region of Tuscany. It borders on the communes of Casole d'Elsa, Castellina in Chianti, Castelnuovo Berardenga, Colle di Val d'Elsa, Poggibonsi, Siena, and Sovicille. The ...

, a fortified village north of Siena, on the ancient Via Cassia that leads to Florence. In 1932, the wine designation specified the production limits for

Chianti Classico A Chianti wine (, also , ) is any wine produced in the Chianti region of central Tuscany. It was historically associated with a squat bottle enclosed in a straw basket, called a ''fiasco'' ("flask"; ''pl. fiaschi''). However, the ''fiasco'' is ...

, which is a

DOCG The following four classifications of wine constitute the Italian system of labelling and legally protecting Italian wine: * ''Denominazione di origine'' (DO, rarely used; ; English: “designation of origin”), * ''Indicazione geografica tipi ...

(in Italian "Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita", governed by Italian regulations).

Geography

In addition to the cities already mentioned at the origin of this region, the city of

Greve in Chianti Greve in Chianti (the old name was Greve; in 1972 it was renamed Greve in Chianti after the inclusion of that area in the Chianti wine district) is a town and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Florence, Tuscany, Italy. It is lo ...

radically expresses its connection directly in its name or as

Impruneta Impruneta is a town and '' comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Florence in the Italian region of Tuscany. The population is about 15,000. Name and production The name Impruneta is derived from ''inprunetis'' meaning "within the pine woods", and ...

which claims the name Impruneta in Chianti although it is not an official designation.

Agriculture

Like all rural regions of Tuscany, there is no monoculture and there are

vineyards A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards ...

olive trees The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' 'M ...

cereals A cereal is any grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran. Cereal grain crops are grown in greater quantities and provide more food ...

and potatoes.

Silviculture

In the lower hills, there is the exploitation of oak woods, on the higher hills those of chestnut and holm oaks. Everywhere there are cypresses.

Viticulture

The name of Chianti wine refers to a region strictly located in the provinces of Florence, Siena, Arezzo, Pistoia, Pisa and Prato. Cities in the region with explicit reference in their names: *Greve in Chianti and its hamlets: Panzano in Chianti, San Polo in Chianti *Radda in Chianti *Gaiole in Chianti *Castellina in Chianti

References

External links

* {{authority control Geographical, historical and cultural regions of Italy Geography of Tuscany Wine regions of Italy