Solaia, the flagship wine of Italy’s best known producer, is the golden child of Piero Antinori and esteemed enologist Giacomo Tachis, whose magic touch has graced the greatest of Super-Tuscans (Sassicaia, Tignanello, Sammarco, and Argiano). The 1978 debut was limited to its homeland, but once this life-changing wine ventured out internationally, it entranced wine enthusiasts worldwide.

While the Antinori family holds an eminent position in the modern history of wine—particularly with relation to the Super-Tuscan category—its career in wine actually commenced in 1385, when Giovanni di Piero joined the Wine Sellers Guild as an apprentice. This modest and unassuming beginning authored centuries of dynamic and visionary production, realized in the acquisition and development of estates concentrated in Toscana’s finest and most progressive viticultural areas—Montalcino (Pian delle Vigne), Chianti Classico (Tignanello, Badia a Passignano, Pèppoli), and Montepulciano (La Braccesca). The family also pursued substantive expansion outside this region, establishing estates in Umbria (Castello della Sala), Piemonte (Prunotto), Puglia (Tormaresca), Hungary (Bataapati), Chile (Albis and Albaclara), Washington (Col Solare), and California (Atlas Peak), among many others.

While its fellow portfolio member Tignanello may have introduced the eponymous estate, Solaia has never been in the shadows of its predecessor, having emerged as its friendly estate rival virtually upon its international debut (1979). While its initial appearance enjoyed only limited release in its native land, the original composition—80% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Cabernet Franc—was replicated in the ’79. In subsequent vintages, however, Franc’s contribution was reduced, and ’82’s introduction of Sangiovese (20%) essentially rendered Solaia the inverse of Tignanello. After a series of slight alterations reflecting the nuances of individual vintages, Solaia’s identity emerged as today’s current blend—75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Sangiovese, and 5% Cabernet Franc.

Like the Tignanello, Solaia is derived exclusively from its namesake vineyard, Solaia—meaning sunny one—a 10-hectare, southwest-facing site that is comprised principally of marl soils and albarese rock. It is produced exclusively in vintages of high caliber (for example, the 1980, 1981, 1983, 1984, and 1992 vintages were not released). The 2002 Solaia is a rare vintage where the winemaker chose not to use Sangiovese (which did not ripen as hoped). The result is an opportunity to taste and cellar a Solaia that harkens back to its earliest vintages when Antinori and its enologist Tachis made the wine without Sangiovese. This unique vintage is sure to be among the most collectible in recent memory.