Le Macchiole
In 1983, Bolgheri was not a well-known wine-growing region. It was a stretch of coastal farmland in Tuscany, known mainly for the cultivation of wheat and olives. When, in the same year, Eugenio Campolmi and his wife Cinzia Merli began planting vines there, friends and relatives thought they were taking an unnecessary risk. Four decades later, ‘Le Macchiole’ had become one of the most respected brands on the Etruscan Coast, and Bolgheri one of Italy’s most talked-about wine appellations.
History
Eugenio Campolmi and Cinzia Merli were originally from Bolgheri. They started with 4 hectares on Via Bolgherese, the road running through the appellation, and bottled their first wine in 1987. Two years later, in 1989, the ‘Paleo Rosso’ was released, it was this wine that first defined the Le Macchiole style.
Throughout the 1990s, Eugenio pursued a well-thought-out and, at the time, unconventional strategy: rather than relying on Cabernet Sauvignon, the dominant variety in Bolgheri, he focused on Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Franc, varieties that were then considered risky or uncommon in the region. In 1994, the ‘Messorio’ (Merlot) and ‘Scriò’ (Syrah) wines were released for the first time. Eugenio passed away in 2002, and management of the estate passed to Cinzia. Since then, she has been at the helm, supported by her sons Elia and Mattia, who now play an increasingly important role in the winery’s operations.
Vineyards
The estate cultivates around 35 hectares, spread across a multitude of small plots within the Bolgheri appellation. The vineyards do not form a single contiguous block, but rather a mosaic of separate plots, each with its own distinct character, including ‘Vignone’, ‘Ulivino’, ‘Casavecchia’, ‘Puntone’, ‘Sommi’, ‘Livrone’ and a number of others. Each plot is treated as a separate unit; the grapes are harvested separately and the wine from each is vinified separately from the others.
Organic farming practices are implemented across all the vineyards, based on the belief that the soil must be healthy in order to produce wines that truly reflect their origin.
Terroir
Bolgheri is situated on the Etruscan coast between the Tuscan hills and the Tyrrhenian Sea. Geologists have identified 27 different soil types within the appellation, which is an unusually high level of diversity for a relatively small area. Most of the soils on the Le Macchiole plots are clay-sand with alkaline characteristics; they are fine-grained but dense enough to give the wines a good mineral structure. The climate is typically Mediterranean: dry and moderately breezy, with temperatures slightly lower than on the rest of the Tuscan coast, which helps to preserve freshness and extend the ripening period into autumn.
Grape varieties
Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Franc are the three varieties on which ‘Le Macchioli’ has built its reputation. Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc are also grown for the production of the white wine ‘Paleo Bianco’. It was the special focus on Merlot and Syrah from the very beginning that set this estate apart from the rest.
Eugenio Campolmi was one of the first winegrowers in Bolgheri to take Syrah seriously as a variety capable of producing superb wine in the climatic and soil conditions of this appellation.
Winemaking
The grapes are harvested by hand and sorted twice before entering the cellar. Yields are deliberately kept low, around 900 grams per vine. Fermentation and maceration for both ‘Messorio’ and ‘Scriò’ take place over approximately 20 days in concrete tanks, with ceramic amphorae also being used for ‘Scriò’.
The ageing vessels vary depending on the wine: ‘Messorio’ is aged for 16 months in a combination of new oak barrels, conical barrels and ceramic amphorae, whilst ‘Scriò’ is aged for 12 months in ‘tonno’ barrels, conical barrels, and ceramic and stone amphorae. The gradual shift towards the use of concrete tanks and amphorae reflects a broader trend at the estate towards winemaking aimed at preserving the wine’s freshness and minimising the influence of the container itself.
Wines
The range comprises five wines. Messorio is a 100 percent Merlot, first produced in 1994 and the estate’s most famous wine. Its name refers to the traditional Tuscan wheat harvest, the most important event in the agricultural calendar.
Scriò is a 100 percent Syrah, also from the 1994 vintage, produced in very small quantities and named after the Tuscan word meaning ‘pure’ or ‘sincere’ .
Paleo Rosso is a 100 percent Cabernet Franc, the estate’s oldest red wine, first produced in 1989. Paleo Bianco is a white wine, a blend of Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
Bolgheri Rosso rounds off the range as a more affordable red wine for everyday drinking, comprising a blend of the vineyard’s main red grape varieties. All wines in the range fall under the Toscana IGT category, which gives the team the freedom to work without the restrictions of a DOC designation regarding grape varieties or blend composition.
Regions
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