Dear Sir, Chiantis can be found in wicker round decanter-like bottles. Do I keep those bottles standing up in my cellar? (Not me standing up.) What wines typically come in that kind of bottle? Thank you!
Answer From Expert Roger Bohmrich MW
The straw-covered bottle you describe is called a fiasco. It was once very popular as it stands out from all other wine bottles. As Italy sought a more upscale image in the 1990s and beyond, the fiasco was perceived as a vestige of another time by the wineries themselves. It is fairly rare to find this presentation today, although there are large-format versions - a very tall bottle with a slender neck - that have been kept as souvenirs. Generally, the wine in a fiasco was a basic Chianti. Serious producers, even those using the fiasco for the entry-level wine, tended to use a standard bottle for their best wines. Considering your question about how to store a fiasco, I suppose the best answer is that this sort of wine was not meant to be cellared - it was for immediate consumption with rare exceptions.
