BOLGHERI VINTAGE GUIDE
Most recent vintage first. Click a year to see what we have in stock.
2023 - A season of contrasts on the coast — a wet, mildew-prone spring, intense midsummer heat, a cooler finish — gave variable, mid-weight wines with fresh aromatics. The top estates made elegant, moderately structured reds; drink over the medium term. Sassicaia and the other flagships from 2023 arrive through 2026.
2022 - A hot, dry year that Bolgheri's maritime breezes softened: ripe, dark-fruited, generous Cabernet-based reds with polished tannins and more freshness than inland Tuscany managed. Approachable early; the best will go ten to fifteen years.
2021 - A superb vintage — a cool spring, a hot, dry summer tempered by sea air, and a long, luminous autumn. The wines are deep, structured and precise, with the balance of the great 2016s. Buy the flagships for the cellar; everything else is delicious already.
2020 - A warm, dry season gave ripe, supple, fruit-driven wines that are consistent and charming across the appellation. Drink now and over the next ten years.
2019 - Even, balanced weather produced wines of great purity and proportion — fragrant, structured, long. One of the best recent vintages; cellar the top wines.
2018 - A fresher, more elegant vintage after a rainy spring: lighter-framed, aromatic, finely tannic reds that are drinking well now. Underrated.
2017 - A hot, early, drought-marked year that cut yields and pushed ripeness. The wines are rich and forward, best from estates that picked early; drink now and over the next several years.
2016 - A great vintage — a long, even season with cool nights gave wines of remarkable balance, depth and length. The flagships are among the best ever made on the coast and will age for decades.
2015 - A warm summer produced ripe, opulent, generous wines with plush tannins. Delicious now and for the next decade.
2014 - A cool, wet summer that the coast handled better than inland Tuscany: lighter, fresher, more Bordeaux-like reds with real elegance from the top estates. Drink now.
2013 - A cool, classic season gave aromatic, structured, beautifully balanced wines that have aged gracefully and are showing superbly now.
2012 - A hot, dry summer produced ripe, concentrated, firmly structured wines. Drinking well now with years ahead.
2011 - A hot August gave ripe, rich, rounded wines with soft tannin. Mature and generous; drink.
2010 - A cool, long season produced classic, elegant, structured wines of great finesse. Excellent; the top wines are still developing.
2009 - A warm year of ripe, round, approachable wines. Fully mature; drink.
2008 - A moderate, classic season gave balanced, aromatic, well-structured reds. Drinking well now.
2007 - A warm, dry year produced ripe, generous, forward wines. Mature; drink over the next few years.
2006 - An excellent vintage — structured, deep, balanced wines from a warm summer and a cool finish. The flagships are superb now and will keep.
2005 - A cooler year with harvest rain gave elegant, medium-bodied wines that matured early. Mostly at or past their peak.
2004 - A long, even season produced classic, balanced, age-worthy wines — one of the best vintages of the 2000s on the coast. Still drinking beautifully.
2003 - The heatwave year: ripe, low-acid wines, better here than inland thanks to the sea, but mostly past their best. Drink up.
2002 - A cool, rainy summer; the coast did better than the interior and the top estates made respectable, lighter wines, but most are now tired.
2001 - An excellent, classic vintage — structured, aromatic, deep wines that have aged superbly. The flagships are at a glorious point.
2000 - A warm year of ripe, soft, forward wines that matured early. Past their peak in most cases.