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Rated 98/100 by James Suckling (top 6% of their reviews).
Researched by our team from producer and independent sources — not supplied by the seller.
The 2020 Ornellaia is a classically proportioned vintage — a Cabernet Sauvignon-led blend with a notably higher share of Merlot than surrounding years, offering structured, richly concentrated fruit with Bordeaux-style elegance and finesse from a season of contrasting cold, rain and heat.
This bottling carries the 15th edition of Ornellaia's 'Vendemmia d'Artista' program under the theme 'La Proporzione' (Proportion), chosen by estate director Axel Heinz to reflect a vintage he described as combining sunny ripeness with harmony and balance;
American conceptual artist Joseph Kosuth created the interpretive label, referencing the comparative tree of Indo-European languages and a quote from Vitruvius's 'De Architectura' — note the correct Italian spelling is 'La Proporzione,' not 'La Proportione.'
Tenuta dell'Ornellaia was founded in 1981 by Marchese Lodovico Antinori, younger brother of Piero Antinori, in the coastal Bolgheri appellation of Tuscany; its flagship Cabernet-Merlot blend debuted with the 1985 vintage. Ownership passed to Robert Mondavi in
1999, then to Constellation Brands after its 2005 acquisition of Mondavi, which sold the estate the same year to the Frescobaldi family, Tuscany's other historic winemaking dynasty.
Frescobaldi has owned and operated Ornellaia since 2005.
Bistecca alla Fiorentina (Bistecca alla Fiorentina)
A structured, Cabernet-led Super Tuscan pairs classically with the char and richness of grilled Tuscan steak.
Roast duck breast with dark cherry sauce
The wine's ripe fruit and elegant structure complement the richness of duck and echo dark fruit accompaniments.
Product information compiled from producer, importer and reference sources.
Warm 2020 Bolgheri from Ornellaia's 99 ha coastal estate — ripe black fruit, saline Tyrrhenian freshness, 18 months in 70% new French oak barriques.
Since 1981, when Marchese Lodovico Antinori planted Cabernet Sauvignon on the Tuscan coast in deliberate rivalry with his own family's Sassicaia and Solaia, Ornellaia has operated as both winery and cultural institution — the Vendemmia d'Artista project
commissions a major international artist each vintage to interpret a single word chosen by the winemaker, with proceeds benefiting the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation.
The 2020 word is La Proportione.
The estate's 99 ha span two adjacent blocks: the original 41 ha surrounding the winery on denser clay soils, and the 58 ha Bellaria property to the north on stonier, more alluvial ground. Elevations of 50–120 m asl and Tyrrhenian Sea breezes moderate summer heat, preserving the saline coastal freshness that distinguishes Ornellaia from inland Bordeaux analogues.
Each variety and block is vinified separately: fermentation in stainless steel and concrete below 25°C, followed by 10–15 days maceration (total vat time ~3 weeks). Malolactic fermentation occurs in barrel, and the wine ages 18 months in French oak barriques
(70% new, 30% once-used) — 12 months as individual base wines, then assembled and returned to barrel for a further 6 months, followed by a minimum 12 months bottle age before release.
The 2020 vintage was warm, producing a darkly toned, generously ripe expression with pronounced black fruit character; approachable with aeration but structured for aging through approximately 2046.
Sommelier’s pick: Bistecca alla Fiorentina with rosemary-salted crust · Braised short rib with bone marrow gremolata · Aged Pecorino di Pienza with truffle honey
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