You can easily distinguish a Chianti Classico from a Chianti by the unmistakable pink label with a black rooster on the neck of the bottle.
You’re probably asking yourself why the black rooster?
The Black Rooster legend
The Gallo Nero (Black Rooster) was the historic symbol of the League of Chianti and has become the symbol of the wines of Chianti Classico. The Black Rooster symbol is linked to a medieval legend that takes place during the time of open hostilities between Firenze and Siena for control of the Chianti territory.
Legend says
to stop the ongoing battle for Chianti territories between Florence and Siena, the two towns decided to solve the matter once and for all with a challenge.
The challenge required that two knights from Siena and Florence galloped from their individual cities at sunrise, when the first rooster crowed. The point where the two knights met, would become the official border. It was clear that to win this challenge and obtain more territory, both towns had to choose, not their knights and horses wisely, but their roosters.
Siena opted for a white rooster. They treated it like a king, feeding it at dawn every day, so that on the morning of the race it would crow at the sight of light, eager for food.
Florence instead chose a black rooster. They locked the rooster in a small, dark chicken-coop and did not feed it for days.
On the day of the race, the black rooster was set free. Nervous, hungry and finally free, he crowed much earlier than sunrise, allowing the Florentine knight to depart well in advance and ride earlier and further.
Thanks to his considerable head start
the Florentine knight met his opponent in Fonterutoli, only 12 km from Siena.
This allowed Firenze to control nearly the entirety of the Chianti territory.
