The Story from Chianti You Probably Haven't Heard

How a knight and a rooster decided a battle

Here's a fun story for you!

Have you ever noticed a black rooster on the label of your favorite Chianti wine? Sorry, I mean … your Chianti Classico wine?

Here’s how the story goes.

We're in Tuscany, right between Florence and Siena.

These two cities have contested this fertile land for centuries. To settle the dispute over the Chianti territory's boundaries during the Middle Ages, they came up with an unusual solution involving a knight and a rooster.

Their plan was simple.

At the rooster's crow, knights from Florence and Siena would ride towards each other and the spot where they met would determine the boundary.

But their strategies were quite different.

(We visited the Chianti Classico region just for you! 👇)

Siena chose a white rooster and pampered it, feeding it well the night before. Florence chose a black rooster and kept it hungry and in the dark.

Can you guess which one started crowing long before dawn?

Yep, it was the starving black rooster!

This clever strategy gave the Florentine knight a significant head start. By the time the white rooster crowed, the Florentine was almost at Siena’s gates.

The two knights met just 12 km (about 7 miles) from Siena.

This is why a black rooster is featured on the label of Chianti Classico wines, because thanks to it, most of the Chianti region came under Florence's control.

So the next time you open a bottle of Chianti Classico wine, you'll have a fun story to share!