Richard Esling On the Grapevine : Campo Alla Sughera: quality without compromise

In the Bolgheri region on Italy’s Tuscan coast, where Mediterranean breezes temper the summer heat and the hills shelter the vineyards from the worst extremes of the weather, a new generation of great wines has established itself alongside the region’s most celebrated names. Among them, Campo Alla Sughera stands out for an approach that places quality above consistency of style.

The philosophy is deceptively simple: the objective is to make the finest wine possible in every vintage, rather than force each year’s harvest into a predetermined mould. In a region where Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc have found an alternative home, this is an increasingly important distinction. Every growing season brings its own challenges, from the timing of spring growth to summer temperatures, rainfall and the pace at which grapes reach maturity. Rather than fight these differences, Campo Alla Sughera seeks to understand and work with them.

The result is a collection of wines that share a sense of place but are allowed to express the character of the year. It is a thoughtful response to climate change, too. As temperatures rise and weather patterns become less predictable, the ability to adapt vineyard management, harvest dates and blending decisions is becoming essential. Quality cannot simply be prescribed in advance; it has to be earned anew with every harvest.

Campo alla Sughera celebrates 25 years since its first harvest, which led to the production of a single wine - Arnione, the estate’s Bolgheri Superiore. The flagship Arnione 2022 represents the estate’s ambition to produce a wine of depth, complexity and longevity. Bolgheri’s signature Bordeaux varieties provide the foundations for a wine in which ripe fruit, carefully judged structure and refined tannins can combine to create something both powerful and elegant. The measure of success is not whether it tastes exactly like the previous vintage, but whether it captures the best that the season has offered.

Adeo 2024 provides another expression of the estate’s philosophy. With its emphasis on accessibility without sacrificing character, it offers a different perspective on Bolgheri’s distinctive combination of Mediterranean warmth and international grape varieties. The vintage itself inevitably influences the balance of fruit, freshness and structure, making each release an individual interpretation rather than a carbon copy.

The Campo Alla Sughera IGT 2021 further demonstrates the value of allowing the vintage to lead. The freedom associated with the IGT designation gives the producer scope to pursue the blend and expression that best suit the fruit. In the hands of a quality-driven estate and winemaker, that flexibility can be a considerable advantage, particularly as climatic conditions continue to evolve.

Not everything here is red, however. Arioso Vermentino 2025 brings a welcome coastal freshness to the picture. Vermentino is particularly well suited to Mediterranean conditions, offering the potential for aromatic lift, lively acidity and a bright, refreshing character that makes it a natural companion to seafood and the lighter dishes of the Tuscan coast.

What unites these four wines is not rigid uniformity, but a commitment to excellence. In a changing climate, the most successful producers may well be those prepared to adapt without losing sight of their identity. At Campo Alla Sughera, the ambition is not to make every vintage the same. It is to make every vintage the best it can be.