Garzaia Bolgheri Superiore, Ruffino 2023 75cl

A garzaia is a heronry, the place where herons nest. It's what Ruffino named its estate in Bolgheri, and the birds on the label are those herons. Garzaia is the family's first Bolgheri Superiore, and it marks a serious move by an old Chianti name onto the Tuscan coast.

The vines are in Le Sondraie, on the northern edge of the Bolgheri appellation, barely above sea level on clay and limestone. Winemaker Olga Fusari built the wine around Cabernet Franc (70%), the grape that has quietly become Bolgheri's signature, with 30% Merlot for flesh. It spends 18 months in French barriques, 70% of them new.

2023 was hot and sunny, until heavy rain at the end of August refilled the soils and let the grapes finish ripening calmly. The result is deep ruby, with Mediterranean scrub (rosemary, myrtle, warm earth) over ripe red fruit. The Cabernet Franc gives frame, lift and a herbal edge. The Merlot fills the mid-palate and rounds the tannins into something plush. At 15.5% it's a big wine, but it carries its weight well, and the finish is long.

This is a collector's bottle in the making and is priced as one. It's generous enough to open now after a long decant, but the real pay-off comes from 2028 onwards, and it will hold well into the next decade.

How to Serve

Serve at 18–20°C in a Bordeaux glass, after at least two hours in a decanter while it's young.

Where to Drink It

Hawksmoor, where a coastal Tuscan red meets its natural partner. Bibendum in South Kensington, for a grand occasion. Noble Rot, for a list that takes Bolgheri seriously.

Food Pairings

A rack of lamb crusted with rosemary and garlic. The herbs echo the scrub on the nose, and the fat softens that youthful tannin.