2018 Podere Grattamacco Bolgheri Superiore Tuscany 750 ml

While we often see bottles of Sassicaia and Ornellaia in impressive collections, the absolute savviest Italophiles separate themselves with deep verticals of Podere Grattamacco’s trailblazing Super Tuscan.

Grattamacco is second only to Sassicaia as Bolgheri’s oldest Super Tuscan. The winery is older than prestigious names like Ornellaia and Gaja’s Ca’Marcanda—and their 2018 Bolgheri Superiore outscored both of them in the pages of Wine Advocate.

The 96-point score tied it for the second-highest rated Bolgheri wine of the vintage. Sassicaia was the only one the publication thought was better—and that bottle costs more than twice as much. For fans of First-Growth Bordeaux as well as first-class Bordeaux-style blends from Italy and Napa Valley, this is the definition of an overperforming collectible.

Founded in 1977, Podere Grattamacco is situated on 67 acres blessed with a panoramic view of the Tuscan coast. The vines there have an average age of 24 years, producing the wine’s precious Cabernet, Merlot, and Sangiovese. 

Winemaker Luca Marrone and proprietor Claudio Tipa farm their vineyards organically. Influenced by a maritime-influenced microclimate, their steep hilltop overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea sees 300 sunny days a year, tempered by brisk ocean breezes that refresh the vines. This combination of conditions promotes exquisite ripeness and produces opulent wines that boast classical Bolgheri structure and rusticity. Conditions were fantastic in 2018, a warm year that created powerful wines endowed with bold, ripe fruit.

After spontaneous fermentation in oak vats, the Grattamacco is punched down manually and macerated carefully, extracting only fully ripe tannins. A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, and 15% Sangiovese, it was bottled after 18 months in French oak barriques and is now hitting a beautiful stride.