When visiting Podere Campriano, up on the hill overlooking the small Tuscan village of Greve in Chianti, you feel as though you’ve entered your own small, quiet slice of Tuscan paradise. Your hosts, Elena Lapini, her husband Luca, and son Pietro, could not be more good-humored and generous. If you have time, they will offer you an assortment of their delicious, home-made salumi made from local wild pigs—an ideal mid-afternoon or early-evening snack. And, of course, they will pour you a glass or two of their humble, but soulful and pure Chianti Classico, which pairs beautifully not only with the family’s cured meats, but also with all kinds of pastas. 
    Take this quick recipe for Tuscan pesto, shared by Elena: In a mixer or mortar, blend a large bundle of sage, some mint leaves, and a handful of pine nuts or walnuts. Add a healthy portion of grated Parmesan and/or Pecorino, and then incorporate everything with a generous amount of your favorite extra-virgin olive oil. Mix with al dente pasta, adding a splash of cooking water if the sauce gets too thick. Grate more cheese over the top and serve with Campriano’s Chianti Classico.
     Just beginning to mature, the 2019 is in its sweet spot—pungently savory with herbaceous reminders of the Tuscan countryside, it is the perfect foil to this fragrant pasta that only takes a few minutes to whip up! From less than two hectares of pampered Sangiovese, this bottling evokes frutti di bosco, scorched earth, and a touch of spice, and offers the ideal introduction to this humble and charismatic family.