2018 Fattoria Le Pupille Saffredi Maremma Toscana Rosso IGT 750 ml

Few wines translate the Maremma region’s generous sunshine and rugged hillsides into power and grandeur as beautifully as Le Pupille’s 2018 Saffredi—and they all end in -aia. From one of the region’s pioneering estates, Saffredi is a wonderfully balanced Super Tuscan that belongs right alongside Italy’s biggest names.

With the boldness and finesse that have made Super Tuscans a global sensation, this bottle does more than show why we keep coming back to this wild Tyrrhenian coast: It’s 97-point score matches the 2018 bottlings from Solaia, Ornellaia, and Sassicaia, all names that make collectors instinctively reach for their wallets. 

Vinous founder Antonio Galloni has reviewed nearly every vintage of Saffredi, dating back to 1987, and he said this 2018 may be the most refined he’s ever tasted. In the same effusive review, he praised the wine as a “regal, elegant, supremely polished wine,” and “a total knock-out.”

We imagine the critic savoring the dark fruit and spiced aromatics while he penned those words—with every sip, every revelatory accent of cherry, mocha, and licorice meriting more praise. That’s certainly how we felt as we polished off the bottle, finding new complexities to ponder all the way to the last drop. 

The Maremma’s dry summers and generous sunlight make for exceptionally concentrated grapes, while its maritime influence maintains aromatic levity. The coastline is blanketed in parts by pine forests, the hillside vineyards benefitting from near-constant ventilating winds that preserve brightness in the final wine.  

When Elisabetta Geppetti inherited her family’s estate at just 20 years old, consulting winemaker Giacomo Tachis, the late Antinori ace who would eventually be crowned Decanter’s Man of the Year, encouraged her to make a Super Tuscan at Fattoria Le Pupille.

Such wines from northern neighbor Bolgheri had already been under the wine world’s spotlight for several years by the time Saffredi’s first vintage (1987) was released. But soon, Le Pupille and its flagship wine were being mentioned in the same breath as Sassicaia, Ornellaia, and the other top Super Tuscans. Elisabetta saw to it that Saffredi stayed at the top, and her impact has been long-lasting. Now, more than three decades later, she’s known as the “Ambassador of Maremma,” largely because of the success of Saffredi, one of the region’s marquee wines.

Built on 60% Cabernet Sauvignon with 30% Merlot and 10% Petit Verdot, the 2018 rendition is one of their best. After 18 months in 70% new French oak, it’s profoundly polished and harmonious, a truly exceptional Super Tuscan.