On this day December 16th three florins, 26 soldi and 8 denari shall be given to Piero di Tini Riccio for 6 barrels of Chianti wine! the aforementioned we pay for by written order of Ser Lapo Mazzei.’ In these words, found in a document dated 1398, the wine of Chianti appears in print for the first time. Six hundred years later the Mazzei family has become inextricably entwined with the identity of Chianti, described by Lapo Mazzei, present head of the family, as a ‘difficult, austere, yet bountiful land’. It is difficult for many Australians, even those able to trace their lineage back through European or Asian family history, to appreciate the depth of the connection which evolves between a single family and its home over a period of nearly six hundred years, the time the Mazzeis have owned the village of Fonterutoli. Something of an insight can be seen in the recent writings of Lapo Mazzei, as he introduces a book containing the letters which his ancestor, Ser Lapo, penned around the turn of the 14th century. Talking of his decision to leave the family’s wine business in the hands of his children, notably Francesco and Filippo, he writes: ‘I wish to dedicate these thoughts, which the letters of Ser Lapo have prompted, to my five children, all of whom are involved in the life of Fonterutoli with the various responsibilities entrusted to them and all of whom, to my immense joy, have made these same sentiments their own. ‘I am sure that their love for our land will be accompanied by a constant attention to the problems and improvement of the entire region and that, in their turn, they will transmit this commitment to future generations, together with their respect for and fairness towards all those who with their work contribute to the life and progress of Fonterutoli. ‘I am reminded of the words of Jacopo Mazzei, my father: “that the goods that have been entrusted to us we do not lose through error or through fault of our own and we always know how to administrate them intelligently”. ‘I conclude by quoting a reflection of Ser Lapo to Datini, preserved in an age-old carving in the garden of Fonterutoli: “To temporal things you gave the importance that must be given to them, that is, having them as if you did not and not resting your heart upon them”.’ And they say it’s only wine! Tradition Meets Technology Beneath its timeless exterior, the Mazzei’s winery at Fonterutoli is bustling with energy and new ideas. Franceso Mazzei and winemaking brother Filippo are seeking to double the size of their new fermentation and maturation cellars to provide space for a series of traditionally-shaped stainless steel fermenters whose round conical design dates back several centuries. Constructed like a cone truncated two-thirds of the way up, these fermenters are used with lids fully open, above which a large and moveable piston is able to hydraulically work the fermentation in a unique and gentle pumping action. The piston folds in when moving upwards, so it only exerts pressure on the fermenting must on the downward push. ‘This way we don’t stress the must and extract hard, unwanted tannins by breaking seeds and skins’, says Francesco Mazzei. ‘We also get a better extraction of colour and retention of flavour since we tend to lose volatile aromas if we pump fermenting juice over the cap during fermentation. We get very soft and round tannins from these fermenters, even with big wines and big vintages.’ These fermentation techniques gradually being adopted at Fonterutoli are rare in Tuscany, but are becoming more common in France and California. On this trip to Europe I did see another fermenter, made of large oak staves, of almost identical design, with a mobile plunger located above. It was at the Domaine de la Romanee-Conti.
