2016 Caiarossa, Rosso di Toscana IGT

The Wine Team attended the annual Gambero Rosso’s “Tre Bicchieri” event in San Francisco this past week. There’s a bevy of amazing new releases, but you rarely stumble upon library reserve wines until we sampled the 2016 Caiarossa, Rosso di Toscana IGT (current vintage 2022). This is their top-tier flagship blend that is firing on all cylinders as we roll onto its tenth anniversary.  Founded in 1998, Caiarossa is situated in the heart of the Val di Cecina, on the Tuscan coast, 16 miles northeast of Bolgheri, home to famed producers like Saccicaia and Ornellaia. In 2004, Eric Albada Jelgersma, a Dutch entrepreneur with a great passion for wine and also the owner of Château Giscours and Château du Tertre in Margaux, Bordeaux purchased the property. (A blend of seven grapes biodynamically farmed—42% Cabernet Franc, 25% Merlot, 15.5% Syrah, 6% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot, 4.5% Sangiovese and 1% Alicante.)  A Super Tuscan blend true worth can be measured by how it evolves with age.