Libero Chianti product reviews

Having actually visited the chianti region in Italy - upon seeing this wine come up for review, I was very keen to try it - sometimes a good wine is hard to find!! I was delighted to open my review box and see it in there, that's for sure!

Husband and I have not previously sampled any of the Fratelli Saraceni wines, so were going into this review with a completely open mind. What better occasion to try a new wine than on my birthday (I mean really, any time, with no occasion is really needed!)

The bottle itself is very appealing, with beautiful writing and shiny lettering and a lot of personal touches added to it - a signature from the winemaker (I'm presuming), a wee blurb about the story behind the wine - which my small amount of italian leads me to believe this wine is a family made wine, being made for generations this way and is proud of its superior quality and traditions, as well as continuing to try and improve and be innovative. The labeling is very clear and indicates the alcohol content (important to note) and also mentions that there are sulphites, which for a couple of friends that cannot have them, is very good to know.

Opening the bottle was relatively easy, well, as easy as a corked wine can be! I do like that it is a corked wine rather than a screw top as, although I understand the reasoning behind the screw tops, love the sound of the POP as the cork comes out! We then stood the wine to let it breathe for a wee bit, before pouring a couple of generous glasses (seeing as we were not going anywhere, and so were drinking responsibly) .

The chianti itself had a lovely fruit filled aroma as soon as the cork was removed, and the colour of the wine was lovely as well - a rich and deep red, you could taste the fruit in it. Upon checking we discovered the berry taste we thought was there was actually a cherry taste! Swilling a little in my mouth (very wine taster of me) it coated my mouth nicely and did not leave a lot of after taste - only a little, and definitely not un pleasant - which other (cheaper) reds tend to give.

Husband and I talked briefly about what this chianti would potentially be best with, and we agreed more red meat - a lovely grilled steak, and a beautiful glass of this wine would be perfect. I do think during winter, this wine would go lovely with a roast lamb or pork, and also as a match for cheese.

Husband is more of a red wine drinker than I, so I felt it best to ask his opinion on whether he would buy it again and if he thought the price was about right. He said it definitely is a wine that is worth paying a little more for, and would gladly reccomend, and consume it again!

Having already sampled - and thoroughly enjoyed - another wine in this range, I was looking forward to trying this one. It was the perfect night for it; my daughter had invited friends over to her house for a barbeque, and I was also planning to be there, so I arrived complete with the bottle for testing. It is always good to have several people around to help try a new product as you then get different perspectives. I am the first to admit that I can sometimes be in the minority with my evaluation, so it is important to have a robust discussion and get other people's point of view.

Chianti is one of those wines that inspires certain expectations: medium dry, full flavour, distinctive bottle in a wicker basket. When I was a student, the only drink we could afford was the rough local red, guaranteed hangover material! If someone had the funds, we would get a bottle of chianti for a treat and think ourselves true oenophiles (and, of course, then hang the empty container from the ceiling!) This product bears no resemblance to any of that. The bottle is a sleek dark green and features red, cream and black labels with embossed cap and logos - very professionally designed and aesthetically quite beautiful. Not a scrap of wicker in sight, and a tightly inserted cork guarding the contents so well that it took us some time to remove it.

The contents gave off a strong, fruity aroma as soon as the cork emerged. My daughter poured herself a little to taste and liked it so much that she nearly forgot to give some to the rest of us! One visitor thought she detected berries and honey in the drink, but on checking she found that the fruit she was tasting was in fact black cherry. We held our glasses to the light and admired the rich red, semi opaque colour. Everyone was enjoying it; not one person was negative about the flavour or the appearance.

My daughter and son-in-law have spent some time in Italy, where they got to try many different versions of Chianti. They both said that they had not tasted one as good as this since they came back to New Zealand. The biggest things for them were the way the various ingredients complemented the grapes so that they enhanced the flavour rather than masking it, and the slightly bitter lingering aftertaste. And despite this aftertaste, there was no sign of the acidity that is a feature of some cheaper red wines. Clearly it makes sense to pay that little extra for a quality product.

Neither the visitors nor I are normally red wine drinkers, but having tasted this one (and the Libero Toscana, which I have also tried), all of us agreed that this might be the catalyst to our purchasing the occasional bottle. It surprised me to discover just how good this variety is; it went beautifully with our barbeque, but I can imagine it would also go well with roast dinners or salads. Another product I will happily buy again.