Fiascos
While doing some research before a recent Chianti tasting I attended, I came across a rather interesting random fact.
Chianti is one of the more famous Italian wines and regions (located in Tuscany). There is so much history surrounding the area, the regulations, the wines and the winemakers that one, no five posts, probably wouldn’t cut it. As a sidebar however, SuperTuscans (click here) are essentially rebel Chiantis. There was a period of time when Chianti wines were identified by being bottled in slim-necked, fat bottomed bottles with the telltale straw surrounding the base. These bottles are actually called fiascos – appropriate for a wine that has seen its fair share of these in the occurrence sense… Fiasco is actually the Italian word for flask.
The first mention of this type of bottle dates back to the 1300’s and the production of them continues today. The Comissionaria Industria Fiaschi (manufacturers association) was established in city of Empoli and to this day maintains strict control over the use of the trademark packaging. With the arrival of Super Tuscans, who not only use Bordeaux-blends in their wines but Bordeaux-style bottles for their wines, the fiasco is now only authorized for officially designated DOC Chiantis.
NSpielmann
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