Primocolle (2020)

About this wine

Primocolle is Villa Cerna’s Chianti Classico from Castellina in Chianti, made mostly from Sangiovese with a small touch of Colorino, which gives the wine a little extra color and depth. In the glass it feels lively and polished, with red cherry and plum at the center, backed by violet, iris, and a subtle earthy spice. The fruit stays fresh and energetic rather than heavy, which is exactly what makes Chianti Classico so appealing. There is also a gentle note of dried herb and a hint of licorice that gives it that unmistakable Tuscan personality. Villa Cerna has roots that reach back centuries in the historic heart of Chianti Classico, and this bottle carries that old school sense of place in a very easygoing, drinkable way. It is the kind of red that feels both traditional and immediately likable, with enough savory detail to keep each sip interesting.

About the grape

Sangiovese is the dominant grape here, a Tuscan variety with deep roots in Chianti that the Villa Cerna team matches by clone to the estate soils and low yielding parcels to bring out its structural acidity and regional character. Colorino is a traditional Tuscan blend partner known for its deep color and robust tannins, and at Primocolle it is kept to a small percentage to bolster color and backbone without altering the Sangiovese core. Villa Cerna grows these vines on the first hills of the Chianti Classico zone in stony, calcareous soils and has undertaken clonal selection and careful yield control to suit each varietal to its parcel. The result is a wine built around precise viticultural choices that emphasize Sangiovese with Colorino used sparingly as a supporting variety.

Quick facts

• ⛰️ The name Primocolle literally means “first hill,” named for the first hill you meet when climbing toward Castellina in Chianti and giving the wine a strong sense of place.
• 🍒 Primocolle is an almost-pure Sangiovese (about 95%) with a tiny 5% of Colorino, the latter used more for deepening color and a pinch of rustic backbone than for flavor dominance.
• 🏛️ Primocolle is produced at Villa Cerna, an estate owned and developed by the Cecchi family since the early 1960s, who matched Sangiovese clones to the property’s soils to refine the wine’s character.
• 🌸 The estate’s lower-elevation vineyards sit around 250–280 meters, a height that helps preserve the wine’s vivid floral perfume and violet notes that many tasters notice first.
• 🛢️ This bottling spends roughly nine months in barriques, a relatively short oak regimen that keeps the wine lively and fruit-forward while adding subtle spice and texture—part of why it’s a dependable everyday Chianti Classico from the estate’s hospitality-focused cellar and foresteria.

Palate profile

Producer

Villa Cerna is an historic estate in Castellina in Chianti that was acquired and renovated by the Cecchi family in the early 1960s. The main building was once a medieval monastery, the property sits on Pliocene soils that give the wines a distinctive mineral character. The family developed the vineyards and built a modern winery while preserving traditional Sangiovese plantings, the estate now covers roughly eighty hectares of vines. Today Villa Cerna combines hospitality with production, featuring a foresteria and a focus on expressing the identity of the Chianti Classico zone.