In the Bolgheri countryside, join me in discovering this beautiful winery, which also tells the story of a family
A while ago, I was invited to visit Tenuta di Vaira. I rarely get the chance to go on wine tastings at the many wineries surrounding Suvereto and the Val di Cornia because, with the children, I prefer other activities. This time, however, my husband and I decided to take the whole family along, so that the children could also discover the beautiful area around us and appreciate it from a different perspective (but don’t worry, we didn’t let them drink!). I couldn’t have made a better choice. The Vaira Estate is a little gem situated in Bolgheri, lovingly cared for and managed, and the guided tour was truly engaging – so much so that even my children were captivated by it.
The wine and the region
Tenuta Di Vaira was founded in the early 1950s in the heart of the Bolgheri DOC, a perfect microclimate between the sea and the hills that perfectly captures the unique character of this area. It is precisely this climate that for years had led people to mistakenly believe that wine could not be made in this area, yet which has in fact proved to be its greatest asset. The salt carried in by the sea, with the sea breeze ‘lashing’ the area for around 200 days a year, combined with rainfall on around 100 days a year, creates a very humid microclimate, characterised by soil rich in mineral salts and iron (and famous for its artichokes).
As our guide pointed out,
“wine is the constant search for a balance between what man wants to do and what the land allows him to do”
At Tenuta di Vaira, the winemaking process – the harvest (which takes place here in mid-August), the manual selection of the grapes, bottling and labelling – is all carried out in-house. Around 120,000 bottles are produced here each year, divided into 8 labels (3 young wines, 5 suitable for ageing). The estate is family-run, which makes it particularly interesting because the passion, study and research that Vincenzo, the founder, has brought here represent, for me, the beauty and pride of being Italian: dedicating oneself to a cause and promoting a region by taking care of it.
The Winery and the Tasting
The guided tour begins on the winery terrace, continues through the garden in front of the vineyard and into the cellar where the fermentation processes take place. Finally, the wine tasting – which can be paired with a cheese platter or bread and olive oil – is served in a beautiful room overlooking the vineyards. I really appreciated that the children were given felt-tip pens and placemats to colour in, so they could keep us company without getting bored.
Before concluding this post, let’s take a step back for a brief look at the history of wines from the Bolgheri area. It is a fascinating and relatively recent history, considering Italy’s long winemaking tradition. Bolgheri has achieved worldwide renown in recent decades thanks to a combination of a unique terroir and the vision of a few winemaking pioneers.
In the 1940s and 1950s, few would have bet on this area’s potential for wine production. However, in 1944, Mario Incisa della Rocchetta planted the first Cabernet Sauvignon vines at Tenuta San Guido, inspired by the great French wines of Bordeaux. Success came in the 1970s, when his wine, Sassicaia, began to receive international acclaim, bringing Bolgheri into the spotlight of the wine world.
The Bolgheri area is now renowned for producing high-quality wines, particularly the so-called ‘Super Tuscans’. These wines, often made from international grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah, represented an innovation in the Tuscan wine scene, which had traditionally been dominated by indigenous varieties such as Sangiovese.
Tenuta di Vaira fits perfectly into this innovative tradition. Their attention to detail reflects a philosophy of respect for the terroir and for the quality of the final product. During the visit, it was clear that every stage of the production process is carried out with meticulous care, from the selection of grape varieties through to winemaking, ageing and bottling.
Every wine produced here tells a story of passion and dedication, a commitment to keeping Bolgheri’s winemaking traditions alive whilst experimenting with new techniques to continually improve the quality of the wines. Tenuta di Vaira is not just a wine-producing estate, but also an example of how agriculture can harmonise with the environment, preserving the beauty of the Tuscan landscape and contributing to its international reputation.
Visiting Tenuta di Vaira was a truly wonderful experience, not only because of the quality of the wines tasted, but also because of the opportunity to see at first hand how passion and innovation can coexist within a context of great tradition. I highly recommend this experience to anyone wishing to deepen their knowledge of wine and the Bolgheri region.
Before concluding this post, let’s take a step back to briefly touch upon the history of wines from the Bolgheri area. It is a fascinating and relatively recent history, considering Italy’s long winemaking tradition. Bolgheri has achieved worldwide renown in recent decades thanks to a combination of a unique terroir and the vision of a number of winemaking pioneers.
In the 1940s and 1950s, few would have bet on this area’s potential for wine production. However, in 1944, Mario Incisa della Rocchetta planted the first Cabernet Sauvignon vines at Tenuta San Guido, inspired by the great French wines of Bordeaux. Success came in the 1970s, when his wine, Sassicaia, began to receive international acclaim, bringing Bolgheri into the spotlight of the wine world.
The Bolgheri area is now renowned for producing high-quality wines, particularly the so-called ‘Super Tuscans’. These wines, often made from international grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah, represented an innovation in the Tuscan wine scene, which had traditionally been dominated by indigenous varieties such as Sangiovese.
Tenuta di Vaira fits perfectly into this innovative tradition. Their attention to detail reflects a philosophy of respect for the terroir and for the quality of the final product. During the visit, it was clear that every stage of the production process is carried out with meticulous care, from the selection of grape varieties through to winemaking, ageing and bottling.
Every wine produced here tells a story of passion and dedication, a commitment to keeping Bolgheri’s winemaking traditions alive whilst experimenting with new techniques to continually improve the quality of the wines. Tenuta di Vaira is not just a wine-producing estate, but also an example of how agriculture can harmonise with the environment, preserving the beauty of the Tuscan landscape and contributing to its international reputation.
Visiting Tenuta di Vaira was a wonderful experience, not only for the quality of the wines tasted, but also for the opportunity to see at first hand how passion and innovation can coexist within a context of great tradition. I highly recommend this experience to anyone wishing to deepen their knowledge of wine and the Bolgheri region.
