Winery / Producer: Podernuovo a Palazzone (Giovanni Bulgari's signature viticulture project).

Specific Origin: San Casciano dei Bagni, Siena, southern Tuscany region, Italy.

Classification: Indicazione Geografica Tipica (IGT) Toscana Rosso.

Grape Variety: 100% Sangiovese (Selection of the best Grand Cru rows).

Soil and Training: Clay-loam soil with a marked presence of limestone. Vineyards cultivated under the Guyot system with strictly low yields of 40 Ql per hectare.

Vinification and Aging: Selective manual harvesting in small crates with subsequent mechanical sorting in the winery. Prolonged maceration with skins for 18 to 30 days. Controlled alcoholic fermentation in conical French oak vats and 500-liter barrels. Extended noble aging of 24 months in large 1000-liter barrels and 500-liter casks, complemented by a minimum rest of 12 months in bottle before release.

Style: Full-bodied, highly complex, aristocratic, fresh, tannic, and formidable cellar-worthy cult red.

Alcohol Content: 14.5% Vol.

Capacity: 750 ml bottle.

SKU: ITA-PODERNUOVO-SOTIRIO-750

Appearance: It displays an imposing and hypnotic ruby red color of remarkable brilliance and vibrancy with subtle garnet reflections of high intensity, exhibiting supreme visual elegance and a glyceric, slow, and dense tear that majestically slides down the glass.

Nose: High intensity, extraordinary clarity, and astonishing layered evolution. It captivates the senses with expressive aromas of ripe red and black fruits in alcohol (cherries, plums), clear floral notes of dried violets and pomegranate, giving way to complex threads of sweet tobacco, noble leather, bitter cocoa, dried mint, marjoram, and a background of fine wood and mineral limestone.

Palate: Its entry is superb, manifesting a perfect balance between structural firmness and tactile delicacy. On the palate, it unfolds dense, stately, and voluptuous; its tannins are firm, powerful, and endowed with impeccable silky and velvety texture. The high acidity provides vibrant mineral freshness and imposing balsamic tension, guiding the liquid passage towards an eternally long, dry, aristocratic, and full finish with spicy aftertastes.

High-End Gastronomic Pairing: Sotirio Podernuovo's imposing tannic structure, limestone freshness, and aristocratic aromatic profile demand culinary dishes of great sophistication and protein complexity. It is the absolute match for large, premium dry-aged red meat cuts prepared over noble wood embers, such as a Florentine T-bone steak (Bistecca alla Fiorentina), a Tomahawk, or a well-marbled Rib Eye. It harmonizes celestially with game preparations like wild boar stew in red wine, venison leg in berry sauce, or lacquered duck magret with pomegranate reduction. It is the perfect companion for complex risottos with black truffle, artisanal pastas with rich lamb ragu, and slow-cooked osso buco. It excels when paired with ultra-aged cheese boards (aged Pecorino Toscano, long-aged Parmigiano Reggiano) and Iberian acorn-fed cured meats. In high Mexican cuisine, it majestically embraces the sumptuous complexity of a Oaxacan black mole or picanha tacos with a crust of dried chilies and cocoa.

Suggested Moments:

• Special Celebration of Life's Great Milestones: The definitive label to commemorate momentous occasions such as silver anniversaries, memorable anniversaries, foundings, or significant professional achievements; a Grand Cru of this caliber immortalizes the occasion.
• High-Level Business Meetings: Uncorking a pure Sangiovese backed by the Bulgari family's seal of excellence projects unsurpassed status, ultimate cosmopolitan refinement, and immense respect for your guests, ideal for sealing decisive agreements.
• Gift of Absolute Distinction for Collectors: A monumental gift for sommeliers, discerning oenophiles, or enthusiasts of great Italian cult wines who appreciate the varietal purity, artisanal aging, and impressive cellaring potential of a Tuscan Grand Cru.
• Festive Family Gala Dinner: The flagship bottle chosen to preside over the family table at the year's most important celebrations, immediately becoming the center of admiration and conversation for the evening.
• Gourmet Collection Barbecue: Elevates the weekend barbecue to a sublime oenological dimension. The firmness and sumptuousness of its polished tannins meticulously cut through the fat of the most selected cuts, cleansing the palate and enhancing the smoky notes of the grill.

What concept and heritage define Sotirio wine within the Podernuovo winery?

Sotirio is the flagship wine, the crowning achievement, and the Grand Cru of the estate. It was named in honor of Sotirio Bulgari, the visionary silversmith of Greek origin who founded the Bulgari high jewelry empire. This wine seeks to reflect the same values of aesthetic perfection, timeless elegance, and meticulous craftsmanship of the family, expressed through the queen grape of its vineyard.

How do the limestone soil of San Casciano dei Bagni and the Sangiovese grape influence this wine?

Being a 100% pure Sangiovese monovarietal, the limestone and clay-loam terroir of southern Tuscany plays an absolute leading role. The limestone gives the wine formidable natural acidity and remarkable mineral tension, which perfectly balances its high alcohol volume and endows the tannins with a supremely aristocratic finesse and silky texture.

Is it advisable to decant this ultra-premium red before consumption?

Yes, it is strongly recommended to decant this wine slowly for 45 to 60 minutes before serving, or to allow it to evolve slowly directly in a large format glass. Due to its imposing phenolic concentration and prolonged noble aging of 24 months, contact with oxygen allows it to fully open up, releasing its complex notes of tobacco, marjoram, violets, and balsamic threads.

What is the ideal serving temperature and its cellaring potential?

To appreciate its sumptuous body, rich aromatic layers, and vibrant structure in a balanced way without the alcoholic temperature standing out, it should preferably be served between 16°C and 18°C. Thanks to its superb tannic structure, high freshness, and limestone concentration, it has an extraordinary aging potential in the cellar of 12 to 18 years, kept stored horizontally.