Fly Away

A reluctant wine writer’s short exile to the Tuscan Coast

“Meet me in Bolgheri!” urged a long-lost friend. I resisted. I don’t like vacations. But I rationalized that we had a free place to stay. There would be a swank infinity pool and aristocratic hosts (one of whom descended from the family that tried to knock off the Medicis in the 1400s). And I hadn’t seen this particular friend in a decade. But the way I was carrying on, you’d think I was Napoleon being exiled to Elba, not Bolgheri, one of the poshest wine locations in Italy.

Before they were famous for their bombastic Super Tuscan wines, Bolgheri in northern Maremma, in the province of Livorno (nearest airport, Pisa), was known for being the Italian Wild West. There were bandits and Italian cowboys, but the area was far more famous for its swamps and malaria than wine. The shift in its history began in 1944, a decade after Mussolini finished draining the swamps. That’s when Bordeaux-loving Mario Incisa della Rocchetta planted the first Cabernet Sauvignon vines. That wine became Sassicaia, one of Italy’s most famous. Its 1968 vintage debuted in 1972. As a result of its success, the chance to celebrate indigenous grapes was lost. The laws insisting on a majority of French grapes, such as cabernet franc, sauvignon, and merlot, were established. What an insult to Italy and Tuscany! What kind of culture negates its own—with few exceptions—in favor of foreign grapes?

Italy has over 2000 indigenous varieties. Did Bolgheri really have to turn to Bordeaux or Napa for inspiration? This kind of wine history infuriates me. Sure, I wanted to see my friends, but this corner of Italy felt like enemy territory. I was not the least bit interested.