2019 Tenuta Argentiera - Bolgheri Rosso DOC (750ml)

Tenuta Argentiera sits on the old Donoratico estate at the southern tip of Bolgheri, on hills once dotted with Etruscan silver mines, which is where the name comes from (“argento” means silver). Founded in 1999, it has the highest-elevation vineyards in the appellation and the closest to the sea, up to 200 meters, cooled by breezes off the Tyrrhenian. Since Austrian entrepreneur Stanislaus Turnauer bought the estate in 2016, quality has climbed steeply. Villa Donoratico is the estate’s Bolgheri Rosso, a Bordeaux-style blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot aged in oak. In 2019 it drew on the same top sites as the flagship Argentiera. Ripe dark and blue fruits, spice, tobacco and a touch of cedar, with a polished, full-bodied palate and fine, silky tannins. Seriously good Bolgheri at a fraction of the Superiore price. Pair with bistecca, grilled lamb chops or wild boar ragù.