Supertuscan

Full-bodied, noble cuvée from the winery of the same name: aromas of red fruits, a light hint of roasted coffee, juniper, pepper and animal notes, an excellent tannin structure and a beautiful acidity give the "Bordeaux from Bolgheri" its exceptional independence and great elegance. SUPERIORE.DE

The name is history. Sapaio – an old Tuscan grape variety, long forgotten, but not its memory. When Massimo Piccin founded his winery in 1999, he chose this name as a sign of his deep connection to the terroir. A tribute to what was and a promise of what was to come. The vineyards extend over the municipalities of Bibbona and Castagneto Carducci, 40 hectares on quaternary deposits, from loose, coarse-grained sand deposits to alluvial soils with calcareous subsoil. Just ten kilometres from the sea, a microclimate that brings Bordeaux varieties to life. Since 2015, Piccin has been going his own way: instead of the prestigious Bolgheri Superiore DOCG, he deliberately chooses the free IGT Toscana, just to be able to add the handful of grapes from Bibbona that make Sapaio what it is today. Sometimes greatness means renouncing titles and regulations.

The Biserno project began in 2001 with a hunch: Piero and Lodovico Antinori, their nephew Niccolò Marzichi Lenzi and Umberto Mannoni recognised the potential of the hills north of Bolgheri. For over twenty years, they worked meticulously on a plot-by-plot basis, defining three distinct estates – Biserno, Campo di Sasso and Collemezzano – and gaining an ever-deeper understanding of the area. Today, Niccolò Marzichi Lenzi runs the estate on his own. Colle Mezzano is his most personal wine.

"This is one of the 50 wines that have changed Italian wine culture." Gambero Rosso

Siepi has always been more than just a vineyard – it was a vision waiting to become reality. Owned by the Mazzei family since 1435, this mystical place lies amidst dense oak forests near Castellina in Chianti: ten hectares of pure magic on Alberese soils, which even the ancient Romans knew how to appreciate. Paradoxically, the story of Siepi 2023 begins with one of the most challenging vintages of recent times. A mild winter with scant rainfall, followed by a rainy spring that pushed the Mazzei winemakers to their limits. And yet, or perhaps precisely because of this, a wine emerged that impressively embodies the estate's philosophy: "Great vineyards shine in difficult vintages."

It was in 1988 that Bruno and Brigitte Widmer dared to dream a bold dream that would change the world of Tuscan wine forever. Their Il Blu – named after the timeless blue label with its orange capsule – became an icon for an entire generation of Super Tuscans, a manifesto of modernity amidst centuries-old traditions. Today, after more than three decades of refinement, the certified organic Il Blu 2022 embodies Barbara Widmer's visionary continuity. What once began as a Sangiovese-dominated blend has evolved, thanks to the ever-increasing complexity of the Merlot vines from Radda – now over thirty years old – into a blend comprising 80% Merlot, with 10% each of Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Camarcanda is a rich Bolgheri Rosso Superiore with a dark bouquet of black fruit, espresso, chocolate, liquorice and tar. The palate is extremely full-bodied, with outstanding depth, dense structure and a firm body. Opulent and long, this wine already shows a wide range of personality. SUPERIORE.DE

Grattamacco was the second winery in Bolgheri in 1982 and is still a firm favourite for great, terroir-driven wines with an independent character. The Rosso Superiore comes from high, coastal slopes with an excellent microclimate and matures for almost two years in French barriques after spontaneous fermentation. The cuvée deliberately does not follow the classic Bordeaux pattern: in addition to Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, Sangiovese also characterises the wine as an indigenous soul – a sign of identity, not convention.

Like a precious legacy, this wine is steeped in the history of the Serristori patrician family, who acquired the Donoratico estate in 1512 and built the magnificent villa in 1660. From the shadow of these historic walls springs a wine that embodies the soul of the Tuscan Maremma – where the salty murmur of the Tyrrhenian Sea meets the warm hills of Bolgheri. In the vineyards of Argentiera – the estate within the Bolgheri DOC that lies closest to the coast and is also the highest in elevation – the grapes ripen amidst Mediterranean scrub and the endless blue of the archipelago. Here, on just twelve hectares of the Villa Donoratico vineyard, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot take root in sandy and rocky soils, whilst the subsoil is permeated by marine flysch rock – a geological memory of seas long past.

Mazzei's top wine Siepi is not only an outstanding Tuscan wine every year, but also a 6-hectare vineyard in the middle of dense oak forests with an ideal altitude and a unique climate. The sunshine is optimal throughout the day and a constant breeze from the west prevents excessive heat and creates a mild, Mediterranean climate. The oak forests also provide an ideal protective barrier against extreme weather conditions. Rocky soils of marl, limestone and clay from the Pliocene period ensure a special balance of elements in this geological complex.

2021 – a Tuscan vintage for the ages. In the annals of Bolgheri, this year will be remembered as the one that revealed the perfection of the Mediterranean terroir in its purest form. A rainy winter, which replenished the water reserves for the coming summer, was followed by a growing season of classic elegance: a cool spring initially delayed budding, but when temperatures rose at the end of May, the development of the vines accelerated in an ideal way. The summer of 2021 was characterised by the Mediterranean drought that makes Bolgheri so unique – three months without any significant rainfall, but the vines did not suffer. The deep, sandy soils, enriched with limestone and stones, had stored the winter moisture and continuously nourished the roots. The exceptional day-night temperature difference, which was amplified by the nearby coast, was decisive and gave the grapes the freshness that makes the 2021 so distinctive.

Three generations bear this name: The grandfather, who always encouraged Giampaolo Motta in his wine dreams. The son who carries on the torch. And in between, this wine, the highest expression of a man who left the leather goods business of his Neapolitan family to create his Bordeaux in the Conca d'Oro of Panzano. The "Golden Basin" – cultivated since 1490, planted with Merlot and Cabernet for almost 400 years – became Motta's stage in 1992. He experimented with Chianti Classico for ten years, then the break: he left the Consorzio because the rules stood in the way of his vision. "I wasn't really happy with the result after ten years of work," he explained laconically. What followed was pure consistency – and, since 2008, a partnership with Stéphane Derenoncourt, perhaps the most influential consultant on the right bank of Bordeaux.

"Ca' Marcanda" is a Piedmontese term meaning "the house of endless negotiations". For eleven months in the late 1990s, Angelo Gaja travelled back and forth from Barbaresco to Bolgheri, holding one discussion after another, until the owners of the plot at the foot of the Colline Metallifere finally signed on the dotted line. By 1996, the land belonged to him. Six years later, the cellar was complete: two-thirds underground, seamlessly integrated into the landscape, just as Gaja had envisaged. A place where wine can be produced with minimal intervention. From the very beginning, Camarcanda was a Bordeaux blend. But which one? For decades, Merlot dominated – accounting for up to 50% – and gave the wine body and approachability. With the 2013 vintage, the last to include Merlot, a new direction began. Since then, Cabernet Sauvignon has taken the lead, accompanied by Cabernet Franc. In the 2023 vintage, this evolution is complete: 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc. For the first time, this blend is considered the established standard of the estate. A turning point in the history of the wine.

The name is a nod to the old silver mines of the province of Livorno. The land on the southern edge of Castagneto Carducci once belonged to the Serristori, a noble Florentine family; today, it is home to 85 hectares of vines spread across four zones, the first of which were planted by the estate in 2000. The cellar is modelled on 16th-century Tuscan fortresses; from its terrace, the view stretches as far as the islands of the Tuscan Archipelago. The vineyards open out towards the sea like a shell, close to the water yet situated on some of the highest plots in the appellation. For this wine, they extend up to around 200 metres, on marl and claystone with interlayers of sandstone and siliceous rock; the rows face from north through west to south, with 7,500 vines and around 6,000 kilograms of grapes per hectare. The sea breeze blows all year round, and as the grapes ripen, the nights cool noticeably.

There are wines that define a region. Saffredi is one of them. When Elisabetta Geppetti, in 1987 – in her mid-twenties and driven by a vision to bring the sleepy Maremma to world fame – created this wine together with the legendary Giacomo Tachis, nobody could have imagined that a Super Tuscan was being born here, one that would rival Sassicaia and Tignanello. The name is a loving tribute to Fredi, Elisabetta's father-in-law Alfredo Gentili, who sparked her passion for wine and, in the 1980s, planted the five-hectare vineyard from which the grapes for Saffredi are still sourced today. The Saffredi single-vineyard plot near Pereta lies at an altitude of 250 metres, facing south-west for the old vines and south-east for the newer plantings. The soil is the result of millions of years of geological processes: of sandstone origin, rich in calcareous marl and iron minerals, low in organic matter, with layers of clay only appearing from a depth of 30 centimetres. On clear days, the view from here sweeps across the hills to the Mediterranean, 25 kilometres away – a proximity to the coast that lends the wine its distinctive freshness and vibrancy.

Grattamacco is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sangiovese, the latter grape variety certainly contributing to the fresh style of this wine. However, the overall picture is only complete when you realise that the vineyards used for this blend are among the best in the appellation. The Grattamacco Bolgheri Rosso Superiore is characterised by its typical aromas of leaves and Mediterranean forest, with subtle flavours of kiwi peel, cassis, paprika and chocolate. Velvety, youthful and firm on the attack, less light than the Alberello, but more tightly woven and of great elegance. Its length is astonishing, great potential! SUPERIORE.DE

Luce is the iconic wine of the estate of the same name and symbolises the harmonious balance between the elegant structure of Sangiovese and the richness of Merlot. The wine marries the tradition and terroir of the Montalcino region with a personal interpretation of this extraordinary land.

Curtain up on a truly grand Bolgheri debut: Barinca is a single-varietal Cabernet Franc that thrives on the limestone- and gravel-rich hills north of Bolgheri – right between its renowned neighbours, Ornellaia and Tenuta San Guido. Under the guidance of Conte Federico Zileri dal Verme, the 30th generation of the Gherardesca family, the grapes are harvested by hand in mid-September, destemmed and fermented spontaneously in open wooden vats in the historic vaulted cellar. Following malolactic fermentation, the wine matures for 18 months inLiters and large 35hl oak casks, before being bottled in a strictly limited edition of 2,400 bottles and 200 magnums and left to age in the bottle until release.

Ornellaia Bolgheri Superiore 2021 is a wine of extreme precision. It offers well-proportioned power and depth with profound layers of black fruit, coffee and liquorice. It captivates with its lustre and polished texture, which merges into great richness, concentration and structure. Enveloping as it progresses with sweet dark fruits and dark spices that linger for a long time. Ornellaia 2021 is a wonderful, if not perfect, example of the impressive potential of this great Tuscan vintage! SUPERIORE.DE

There are wines whose very name gives you goosebumps. Ornellaia belongs to that rare category of wines that not only embody Italian iconography but have also made their mark on global wine history. Ever since that legendary 1985 vintage, when Marchese Lodovico Antinori, together with the visionary OenologistAndré Tchelistcheff, turned the dream of a Mediterranean Bordeaux into reality, this name has stood for uncompromising excellence. The 2022 vintage bears the motto "La Determinazione" – determination – and this description could not be more apt for a vintage that demanded everything from both the vineyard team and the vines. The climatic conditions in 2022 presented a challenge straight out of the textbook: the driest start to the vintage in the last four years, from February to June, was followed by the hottest spell between May and September. Extremes that initially seemed to contradict one another. The prolonged drought slowed growth dramatically, resulting in low yields and concentrated, small-berried grapes. But then came the saving rain in August and September – perfectly timed to restore the balance that characterises great wines. The technical team, led at the time by Axel Heinz and Oenologist Olga Fusari, responded with rigorous selection: in the vineyard and then again in the cellar. The result of this determination is a wine that combines the positive attributes of the sun with surprising freshness.

Tenuta dell'Ornellaia has a distinctive feature that few other estates in the world possess: it renames its flagship wine every year. Not simply by the vintage, but with a sentiment. Since 2006, each harvest has been assigned a term – precise, poetic, inevitably apt. In 2023, the word is: "La Vitalità". And in this vintage, it describes not only the wine, but the beginning of a new chapter. For Marco Balsimelli, director since January 2024, who trained at Boissenot and at Gruaud-Larose in Bordeaux, took the helm at Ornellaia precisely in the winter when the 2023 vintage was still ageing in the barrels. It was his first complete vintage – from the selection of the plots through to the blending and bottling. A debut under the watchful eye of the wine world. And the result proves him right.

"The dynamic vintage produced rich and structured wines, with each of the grape varieties expressing their particular qualities. We got a classic Ornellaia, combining sunny ripeness with elegance in a wine defined by harmony and proportion." Axel Heinz, Gutsdirektor

Every year, the release of the strictly limited artist's edition of Tenuta dell'Ornellaia is a special treat. Today, too, we are pleased to be able to offer you some copies of the latest and 15th edition "La Proporzione" exclusively as a 0.75l single bottle. The original wooden box with 6 bottles contains only one bottle of this sought-after collector's item.

The spectacular "Vendemmia d'Artista" artists' edition has been running since 2006. Every year, renowned artists are invited to design a small series of individual and large bottles of the world-famous Ornellaia Bolgheri Superiore and create an artistic world around this fine wine. It is not a matter of course that we are once again able to offer you some examples of the rare 16th edition of the Ornellaia Vendemmia d'Artista 2021 in the 0.75-litre bottle this year. As usual, this special edition is rare and sought-after, as there is only one bottle of this limited collector's item in each 6-bottle wooden crate.