Over the years, I’ve had the pleasure of bumping into Cecchi fourth-generation wine family icon Andrea Cecchi a handful of times at locales all over the globe, but earlier this year (2025) marked the first time that I had a virtual sit-down with him over Zoom.
Not as fun as our usual face-to-face run-ins, but even this virtual meetup involved tasting some excellent wines, as Andrea had sent over a vertical of samples from one of his relatively newer endeavors, Villa Rosa.
Situated in Castellina in Chianti, Villa Rosa became a pickup that the Cecchi family estates (and Andrea in particular) found irresistible, as they’d been looking to add the also relatively newer Chianti Classico DOCG Gran Selezione designation to their portfolio. Cecchi bought the property in 2015 and pretty much immediately set to work on it for single-vineyard, hand-harvested, double berry selection production of Gran Selezione, with Miria Bracali leading the winemaking duties.
[ Editor’s note: The Chianti Classico DOCG Gran Selezione designation is a bit befuddling (at least to me!) as it overlaps the requirements of the area’s Riserva category, but Andrea summarized it as involving more aging (30 months with 3 of those in bottle, which a lot of Riserva producers tend to do anyway) and (more uniquely) a stricter Sangiovese requirement (at least 90%). Below, you’ll find the hand-dandy quality tier requirements for Chianti Classico, which still begs the question of WHY they decided to add Gran Selezione… but whatever… ]
Villa Rosa’s Cesetto vineyard sits 425 meters above sea level, with a steep AF west-facing exposure smack dab in the Sant’Agnese cypress grove (purportedly Europe’s largest); so it does have a pretty unique terroir setup even in an area where everybody will tell you that they also have a unique terroir setup.
The cypress wood helps to mitigate the warmth of the sunny climate, but the thing that really sold Andrea on Villa Rosa’s Casetto vineyard (first planted in 2001 with local Sangiovese clones) was not the picturesque location per se. “The land for me was the most important thing,” he told me; “Soil, for me, represents seventy percent of the difference.”
Those soils are an interesting mix for a Chianti vineyard. Villa Rosa has alberese (calcareous stone from ancient marine deposits) and galestro (rocks that are a sort of almost-clay sand) soils, neither of which are particularly unique to Chianti. BUT… having them together is a bit more unique, since alberese tends to be found near valleys while galestro is more common at higher elevations in the region. “We are able to have very soft tannins, and [excellent] aging” Andrea noted, with a lower pH in the grapes than average for the area, as a result.
I cannot attest to the pH results, but I do have personal experience now with those soft tannins. And I can say that from the get-go, Villa Rosa has been releasing freakin’ gorgeous Gran Selezione…
2015 Tenuta Villa Rosa Chianti Classico Gran Selezione DOCG, Tuscany, $NA
From a vintage that had a dry winter and a wet spring, and during which they had to pick early to “save the grapes from the wild boar” in the area. This red is finesse all the way. Floral, earthy, and elegant, with hints of orange peel and ample notes of cherry, red berries, herbs, mint, and cigar. The mouthfeel is gorgeous: fresh, tangy, and contemplative with finely-tuned red fruit flavors on a downright epic finish.
2016 Tenuta Villa Rosa Chianti Classico Gran Selezione DOCG, Tuscany, $80
Andrea described 2016 as having “easier weather”: mild, dry, and an earlier than average bud-break. The nose here is particularly pretty, while still being abundantly fruity (red currants, raspberry, cherry), with hints of mint, herbs, and cedar. The palate is rounder than the 2015, but just as juicy, and somehow even tangier and more mouth-watering. Lovely and classy.
2017 Tenuta Villa Rosa Chianti Classico Gran Selezione DOCG, Tuscany, $80
A bit of a back-and-forth (or, as Andrea called it “tougher”) vintage here, with a mild weather promoting early bud-break, followed by April frost reducing yields; then a hot and dry Summer ending in a rainy September. The result might have a shorter aging/drinking window, but comes off as impeccably balanced. More developed red fruits mark the nose along with dried herbs, resin, and dried flowers. The palate is savory, supple, and fresh, with stewed plum and juicy currant action. This is a great option for popping open sooner (with food) to get a feel for how the newer Villa Rosa vintages might develop as they age.
2019 Tenuta Villa Rosa Chianti Classico Gran Selezione DOCG, Tuscany, $80
Wait, WTF happened to 2018? Andrea told me that production in 2018 was extremely low, and they felt that the wine wasn’t ready. The 2019, however, he hailed as “a great, great vintage” with slow and steady weather. It’s mouth-watering just smelling this red’s juicy red fruit and rose petals, augmented by cedar and savory mint notes. There is more structure to this vintage, and it is balanced wonderfully by all of the spicy red fruit flavor, freshness, and minerality.
2020 Tenuta Villa Rosa Chianti Classico Gran Selezione DOCG, Tuscany, $80
The warmer Summer defines this vintage, which showcases darker red fruits, savory herbs and balsamic, wood tones, dried roses, and black tea spices. Richer and more concentrated in the mouth, it still doesn’t lack for freshness; the fruits (black and red currant) are just darker—and more overt—here.
2021 Tenuta Villa Rosa Chianti Classico Gran Selezione DOCG, Tuscany, $80
Bottled in June of 2024, this is still just a puppy, and an exuberant one at that. The cherry and currant fruits are jumping, but you can still make out some rose petal and orange peel happening on the nose, too. It’s rich and long in the mouth, and the finish is subtle at this young stage. What is really, really impressive is the purity of the fruit on the palate; it’s stunning, suggesting some awesome aging potential.
Cheers!