2017 Gaja Sori San Lorenzo Barbaresco 750 ml

It is hard to even utter the word “Barbaresco” without conjuring thoughts of Gaja. 

The history of the estate and their iconic vineyards are deeply intertwined with the region, so when we secured a tiny Gaja allocation, we wanted to be sure we shared it with you first.

Angelo Gaja’s vision for producing powerful wines with plush fruit—in contrast to the stark, tannic bottles of 50 years ago—launched the modern revolution in Barolo and Barbaresco. Today, Gaja is one of the most remarkable producers in the world of wine, a game-changer that upended conventional wisdom in Piedmont and rose to the apex of Italian wine.  

The Sorì San Lorenzo is perhaps the signature bottle of the Gaja estate, and one of the most collectible wines from all of Italy. Antonio Galloni of Vinous, a Piedmont expert, called it “one of the truly iconic wines in Piedmont and Italy,” and the 99-point 2017 is one of the most remarkable young wines we’ve ever tasted. 

Gaja has been making a Sorì San Lorenzo bottling since 1967, three years after Angelo’s father purchased the vineyard—which was already renowned locally for the quality of wine it produced—from the local church. The wine, named in homage to the local patron saint, has always been the most muscular and long-lived of Gaja’s famed Barbaresco trio, showing “a level of intensity that could easily be mistaken for Barolo,” according to Galloni. 

The wine’s prestige skyrocketed in 1971, when Gaja released their first bottling labeled with the vineyard, and it has gained in stature every year since. We can’t think of a better wine to lay down to celebrate important milestones.