2023 Ornellaia Le Serre Nuove dell’Ornellaia Bolgheri Rosso Tuscany 750 ml

Ornellaia is “Italy’s First Growth.” Antonio Galloni of Vinous wrote that their wines “have never failed to literally send shivers down my spine.”  

In 1997, the winery put out their first vintage of Le Serre Nuove. Made from the same estate vineyards by the same extraordinary winemaking team, it’s technically their second wine. But if a Super Tuscan of this quality came from another estate, we’d simply call it a competitor. James Suckling called it “excellent, sometimes implausibly good for a second wine.” 

Bold and full-bodied, powerful and elegant, the 2023 is doubtless one of the greatest Le Serre Nuoves yet. James Suckling crowned it with 95-points, equaling the best score the Tuscan maven has ever given Le Serre Nuove. 

This is your chance to experience Ornellaia at a price that bears no resemblance to their flagship. A blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cab Franc, it’s a fantastic version of a wine that often outscores comparable reds from Grand Cru Classé estates like Château Lafite Rothschild and Château Haut Brion.

Located south of the famed cypress-lined avenue of Bolgheri, the Ornellaia estate drips with pedigree. The original Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc vines here were planted by the legendary Russian-born enologist André Tchelistcheff, who told then-owner Lodovico Antinori that the property was a viticultural “El Dorado.” Today, the wines are made by Olga Fusari, who for years worked alongside the renowned Axel Heinz—“one of the world’s most in-demand winemakers,” according to Galloni. 

For Le Serre Nuove, Fusari selects fruit from younger vines and leans more on Merlot, resulting in a fresher, more elegant profile that drinks beautifully out of the gate. A blend of 50% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Petit Verdot, and 11% Cabernet Franc, the 2023 was hand-harvested into small 15kg boxes, then sorted manually and optically before crush. The components spent 15 months in 25% new and 75% once-used French oak—one year before blending, three months after.

After three more months in bottle, this is a Super Tuscan that refuses to be outshined by any other—no matter the price, no matter the estate.