Small hamlets and towns located in the vicinity of this famous Tuscan wine region.  Chianti (Italian pronunciation: [ˈkjanti]) is a mountainous area of Tuscany in the provinces of Florence, Siena and Arezzo, composed mainly of hills and mountains. It is known for the wine produced in and named for the region, Chianti.  

Cosimo III de’ Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, even decided in 1716 to issue an edict in which he officially recognized the boundaries of the Chianti district, which was the first legal document in the world to define a wine production area.  In 1932, the wine designation specified the production limits for Chianti Classico, which is a DOCG (in Italian “Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita”, governed by Italian regulations).  The name of Chianti wine refers to a region strictly located in the provinces of Florence, Siena, Arezzo, Pistoia, Pisa and Prato.  The Black Rooster linked with the territory has antique origins.   A Black Rooster on a gold background was in fact chosen as the emblem of the Lega del Chianti, a political-military institution created by the Republic of Florence to control the territory of Chianti at the end of the fourteenth century.  Today the symbol is representative of the entire region of Chianti and its wine, the Chianti.   The name “Chianti” first appeared in the 13^th century. At that time, it referred to a geographical location. It eventually became the world’s first legally demarcated wine region in the early 1700s, made official by the Grand Duke of Tuscany, Cosimo III. In 1716, he issued an edict that allowed the region to use “Chianti” for its wines. That same edict also outlined the area we now know as Chianti Classico. In 1872, the second Prime Minister of Italy, Baron Bettino Ricasoli, wrote a letter outlining what we know now as the modern formula for Chianti. He stated that it should be a red blend consisting of mainly Sangiovese grapes. Makers could add other local varieties such as Canaiolo or Malvasia, too.