Bolgheri is a central Italian village of Castagneto Carducci, a commune in Tuscany in the province of Livorno that is well-known to wine lovers for the exceptional quality of the bottles created in the region.
The Bolgheri DOC became an internationally known region following a tasting event in 1974 arranged by Decanter Magazine, where a 6-year-old Sassicaia wine won over a collection of Bordeaux wines in a blind judging – similar to the better-known “Judgment of Paris” of 1976.
Prior to this, the Bolgheri area had been known as producers of quite ordinary white or rosé wines.
The area is now the home of “Super Tuscan” producers, such as Tenuta San Guido who produces Sassicaia, Tenuta Dell’Ornellaia who produces Ornellaia, Ca’Marcanda of Angelo Gaja, and Guado al Tasso of Antinori, among numerous very good producers.
These exceptional reds are usually blends of Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and/or Syrah or other Bordeaux grapes (and very rarely a small amount of Sangiovese). The above-mentioned wineries are the better known ones, but there are smaller and not as well-known ones that also create spectacular wines in this region using Bordeaux grapes.
San Felipe’s Bell’aja Bolgheri Superiore is produced mostly from Merlot grapes (95%) from the oldest parcels of the vineyard with a small amount of Cabernet Sauvignon (5%) and no Sangiovese. This is a classic Bordeaux-styled blend that’s only produced in Italy!
The vintage we tasted had oaky notes with spices and vanilla, as well as dusty leather, and was on the sweet side for a Merlot/Cabernet Sauvignon blend. There were dark currants and coffee beans on the nose with a touch of sandalwood. Very food friendly, it was one of this season’s earliest reasonably priced discoveries from Bolgheri.
Another wine produced in the area but presented as just “Toscana IGT” is Poggio ai Ginepri of Argentiera.
Poggio ai Ginepri is composed of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc, 30% Merlot, and 10% Petit Verdot – all vinified separately and then blended. We tasted a 2021 sample bottle and thought it was a nice young wine with defined structure and good concentration. Most of our tasters considered it approachable and ready for early drinking. It also had a remarkably clean finish.
Black fruit – mostly black plums and blackberries – is evident on the palate, as well as a touch of black cherry, sage, and cedar. A couple of the tasters reported sandalwood, which I personally did not smell.
In my opinion, it is a distinguished and noteworthy Bolgheri Rosso. It’s also quite well-priced for a Bolgheri.
We are looking for more of these exceptional libations, and we’ll let you know as soon as we find bottles worth mentioning and at an affordable price!
Manos Angelakis was one of the founders, the former Managing Editor for 25 years, the former Managing Editor Emeritus, and former Senior Food & Wine Writer of LuxuryWeb Magazine. He passed away in 2025 as an accomplished travel writer, photographer, and food and wine critic based in Hackensack, New Jersey. As a travel writer, he wrote extensively about numerous cities and countries. Manos was also certified as a Tuscan Wine Master and traveled to wine-producing areas in order to evaluate firsthand the product of top-rated vineyards. His articles in other publications include Vision Times and Epoch Times.
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