In the mid-1500s, Florentine Duke Cosimo I wasn’t happy with the amount of power he had. He wanted more. Cosimo I was, by all accounts, not a well-liked guy. In writings about him, adjectives like “shrewd,” “greedy, and “unscrupulous” were generally the words used to describe him and his ways. Nonetheless, through bloody power grabbing, Cosimo I somehow convinced the Roman Emperor to appoint him to be the Grand Duke of Tuscany — the whole place.
This power shift erased the Republic of Florence and replaced it with a duchy, or dukedom, that would last from 1569 to 1860. During this period, Chianti was developing organically as a wine region just outside the periphery of the dukedom. However, in 1670, Cosimo III stepped into power and made a few crucial moves that would hugely benefit Chianti’s wine industry in the long run.
On this episode of “Wine 101,” we arrive at a moment in the craziness of Chianti’s history when things actually get a little focused. Tune in for more.
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“Wine 101” was produced, recorded, and edited by yours truly, Keith Beavers, at the VinePair headquarters in New York City. I want to give a big old shout-out to co-founders Adam Teeter and Josh Malin for creating VinePair. Big shout-out to Danielle Grinberg, the art director of VinePair, for creating the most awesome logo for this podcast. Also, Darby Cicci for the theme song. And I want to thank the entire VinePair staff for helping me learn something new every day. See you next week.
*Image retrieved from ZoomTeam via stock.adobe.com