Sub-region
Bolgheri is often seen as the new frontier of Tuscan wine making. In recent decades there has been huge investment in this coastal appellation and there are now stunning wines to match.
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Le Macchiole · 2023
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The history of Bolgheri DOC, located in Tuscany’s coastal Maremma region, is relatively recent compared to other Italian wine regions, but its impact has been profound. Until the mid-20th century, Bolgheri was largely overlooked in the Italian wine scene, known more for olive oil and simple table wines than for quality viticulture. This changed dramatically in the 1940s when Marchese Mario Incisa della Rocchetta planted Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc at his Tenuta San Guido estate. Inspired by Bordeaux and believing the Tuscan coast’s climate and gravelly soils to be well-suited for these varieties, he began producing what would later become Sassicaia - a wine that defied Italy’s traditional classifications and laid the groundwork for the Super Tuscan movement. Initially bottled for private use, Sassicaia gained broader recognition in the 1970s, eventually establishing Bolgheri as a serious player on the global fine wine stage.
The formal recognition of Bolgheri as a Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) came in 1994, following the extraordinary success of Sassicaia and the increasing quality of wines being produced in the region. The DOC allowed for the production of red wines made from international varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah, breaking away from the Sangiovese-dominant regulations of other Tuscan appellations. The establishment of the Bolgheri Sassicaia DOC in 2013 - the only Italian DOC dedicated to a single estate - further solidified the region’s elite status. Today, Bolgheri is synonymous with structured, age-worthy, and luxurious red wines, and has become a symbol of modern Italian winemaking.
