Angelo Gaja: Italy’s Greatest Red Winemaker - Consistently.
Taste 17 Gaja wines from Piedmont including:
5 Langhe Nebbiolo
4 Barolos
& all 4 of Gaja’s Barbarescos Extraordinary 2021 Vintage Release.
Saturday August 9th
Hosted by John Jens
Dinner: 6.30pm, 17 Wines & 5 Courses, $1195
JJ telling stories: Angelo Gaja & JJ at the castle in Barbaresco. A Tony Blackwell photo.
A few words from the many critically acclaimed reviews:
“A genius for sure, Angelo Gaja cannot be faulted for what he puts in the bottle. This work of art is worth everything it will fetch.”
- Robert Parker, June 2004
‘A legend in his own right,’ in her words, Gaja was Decanter’s Man of the Year in 1998 and was voted one of Italy’s two most powerful figures in a recent poll of experts by Decanter.
- Decanter’s publishing director, Sarah Kemp.
" Producer, genius of the word, cultural magnet and extraordinary man".
Awarded 2023 Wine Oscar by Bibenda-Italian Sommelier Foundation
“Champion of Italian Wine” … and the only Italian winemaker on Wine Spectator cover on three occasions (1985, 2011, 2024)”
Wine Spectator
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The Gaja winery needs no introduction. It is a brand known worldwide as synonymous with the best excellences of the Langhe lands. He is not only one of the great historical names of Italian wine, but a true ambassador, who has contributed significantly to the international fame and reputation of our winemaking. The Gaja estate was founded in Barbaresco in 1859, but its great success is mainly due to the intuitions and tenacity of Angelo Gaja. Convinced of the value of the Piedmontese territory and the quality of its wines, Gaja has decided to aim for the highest levels, taking care of every aspect of production down to the smallest details.
Its great wines are born from a profound knowledge of the territory, from a careful selection and valorization of the most suitable plots and from a meticulous and careful management of the vineyard, based on a drastic lowering of yields, to try to obtain greater intensity and aromatic concentration . The innovations introduced by Angelo Gaja also involved the winemaking phase, with delicate and well-calibrated extractions to enhance finesse and elegance. For refinements, he has successfully experimented with the use of barriques alongside large barrels, always with the aim of revealing and highlighting the exceptional characteristics of each individual terroir . Gaja has always sought the best solution, using what was good in the ancient customs of the area, but also resorting to practices from other great wine regions.
Precisely his curious vision and always projected towards novelties, led Angelo Gaja to broaden the horizon of his activity and to turn his gaze towards other areas of the peninsula particularly suited to viticulture. In the early 1990s, he acquired a property in Bolgheri, founding the Ca' Marcanda winery, which produces classic Super Tuscans with international grape varieties. The acquisition of the Pieve di Santa Restituta farm in Montalcino dates back to the same period, particularly in the south-western area of the denomination. The growing interest aroused by the wines of Etna could not leave Angelo Gaja indifferent, who landed on the southern slope of the volcano a few years ago, where he founded the Idda winery together with the Etna producer Graci. The 20-hectare estate is located in the municipal areas of Biancavilla and Belpasso at an altitude between 600 and 800 metres.
callmewine.com -
If I had to choose one word to describe Angelo Gaja, It would be “charismatic.” Angelo possesses a bold and powerful personality and conveys great passion and authority when he speaks. Ironically, when first I met him more than 40 years ago, he struck me as quiet and shy. But as he learned English and started to travel to America on a regular basis, his confidence soared and he became empowered. More than that, he became obsessed—obsessed with convincing the American wine lover that Barbaresco wines deserve a place at the table among the classic wines of the world. Today, he can rest knowing that he has achieved that goal…
Since joining his father, Giovanni, in the family wine business in 1961, at the age of 21, Angelo Gaja has spent six decades building the Gaja name from that of a modest, quality-oriented Barbaresco producer to a complex, multi-winery and distribution enterprise, with four estates in three different regions of Italy. Totaling about 80,000 cases annually, Gaja’s focus is on quality and estate vineyards.
When Gaja made his first trip to the United States, in 1974, there was little market for fine Italian wines. With unrelenting passion Gaja traveled tirelessly, promoting his belief that wines from Barbaresco, the broader Piedmont region, and across Italy could be world-class.
Initially, he was met with a tepid response to his wines, primarily due to pricing. However, Gaja’s Piedmontese charm, exuberant personality and infectious enthusiasm soon won converts.
The wines produced at Gaja winery in Barbaresco are consistently outstanding (90–94 points on Wine Spectator’s 100-point scale) and often classic (95–100 points). They have appeared in the Top 100 more than a dozen times, including two Top 10 appearances, and all three single-vineyard Barbarescos were among the first 15 spots in the inaugural Top 100 list in 1988.
Gaja’s wife, Lucia, is actively involved, as are his three children: Gaia, Rossana and Giovanni.
Wine Spectator has followed Angelo Gaja’s success throughout his career. Gaja first appeared on the cover in 1985, with Robert Mondavi. the subject of our cover feature profile in 1989 and again in 2011. He was awarded the publication’s prestigious Distinguished Service Award in 1997.
Marvin R. Shanken, Wine Spectator
The Wines and Menu
Rossj Bass Langhe 2023, Our Price $172
Rossj Bass Langhe 2022, Our Price $172
Rossj Bass Langhe 2020, Our Price $172
Swimmer crab bruschetta
Gaia & Rey Langhe Chardonnay 2022, Our Price $589
What a beautiful chardonnay, with sliced cooked apples, pears, light cream and pineapple, but so well knit together with a mouthfeel that is caressing and fine textured. So enticing to drink now, but will improve with age. Drink or hold.
96 Points James Suckling, jamessuckling.com (October 2024)
Roasted tiger prawns, nori butter
Sito Moresco 2022, Our Price $134
Sito Moresco 2021, Our Price $134
Beetroot tart tatin, Manchego
Darmagi Langhe 2021, Our Price $845
This wine rocked my world. The Gaja 2021 Langhe Darmagi is Cabernet Sauvignon from 3.5 hectares of vines planted in 1978. The first vintage made was 1982. Despite the ongoing battle with Esca disease, this is definitely one of the best, if not THE best, vintage made. "It's a Cabernet that speaks in the Piedmontese dialect," says Rossana Gaja. Her family has long experience with this grape both in Piedmont and in Bolgheri, Tuscany, where it is featured at the family's Ca' Marcanda estate. I love the luscious, compact richness of the wine that feels virtually seamless to the senses. There is generous black fruit with smoke, ash and spice over an elegant full-bodied texture and chalky tannins.
97+ Points Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate (January 2025)
Darmagi Langhe 2020, Our Price $845
The 2020 Darmagi is one of the most refined editions of this wine I can remember tasting. Silky, aromatic and light on its feet, the 2020 is all class, all elegance. The 2020 will need time to develop its aromatic and flavor complexity, but the balance is there. I have never been the biggest fan of the Gaja Cabernet Sauvignon. This is an exceptional wine by any measure. Sadly, the vineyard faces some challenges at this point in time.
96 Points Antonio Galloni, Vinous (September 2023)
Darmagi Langhe 2019, Our Price $845
The 2019 Darmagi shows the classical austerity of the year in its tightly wound personality. Black cherry, plum, espresso and grilled herbs are some of the many aromas and flavors that emerge from this super-expressive, inviting Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2019 is terrific, and a fine choice for drinking over the next decade or so.
93 Points, Antonio Galloni, vinous.com
Pork belly, cauliflower cream, salsa verde
Dagromis Barolo 2020, Our Price $222
Conteisa Barolo 2020, Our Price $845
This is a really enticing wine with an open and vivid nature that tells you right away it is Barolo, but it’s polished and sweetly tannic. You want to taste and taste. It’s medium- to full-bodied with rounded tannins and a savory finish. Juicy and so approachable now. Better in a couple of years, but hard to resist now. Try after 2026.
98 Points James Suckling, jamessuckling.com (August 2024)
The Gaja 2020 Barolo Conteisa offers subdued and unexpected elegance with great finesse and detailing…The Conteisa with fruit from the Cerequio MGA shows a dark ruby hue with vibrant notes of wild cherry, crushed mint, dusty limestone and pressed violets. The tannins are especially elegant and fine.
97 Points Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate (June 2025)
Conteisa Barolo 2019, Our Price $845
The 2019 Barolo Conteisa is a noble wine, with angular and drying tannins, as well as more mineral expression. Notes of medicinal herbs, crushed stones, and pure cherry lead to a wine that is more restrained right now but will be fantastic. Through the palate, it has compact but wonderful concentration and a driving structure and is more herbaceous, savory, and mineral than fruity and floral. It is outstanding. Drink the 2020s while waiting for the 2019s.
98-100 Points, Jeb Dunnuck
The compelling Gaja 2019 Barolo Conteisa is radiant, austere and elegantly structured. It’s also fragrant, with enticing scents of rose, blue flower, wild herb and dark spice that give way to intense flavours of raspberry, cherry, star anise and menthol. Firm, refined tannins provide support while bright acidity keeps it energized and balanced. Drink 2029–2049.
98 Points Kerin O’keefe, kerinokife.com
Sperss Barolo 2020, Our Price $924
The 2020 Barolo Sperss is a bright red color and reveals an incredibly floral profile of rose petals and ripe strawberries. Aromatically light on its feet, with a joyous feel, on the palate the structure is more focused and compact, with mineral undertones that weave through with more a defined nature. It needs more time, but this is a fantastic red to drink over the coming 30 years.
98 Points Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com (May 2024)
Showing the power and the contoured definition that is typical of Serralunga d'Alba, the Gaja 2020 Barolo Sperss is a wine of greater brawn and intensity. Yet its power remains elegantly in line with the character of the vintage that is ultimately more subdued compared to 2019 or the upcoming 2021. It offers a complete photograph of its territory with rusty ferrous notes, orange peel, dark fruit and licorice. There is a fun end note of dark Amarena cherry to conclude. That hint of sweetness ties into elegantly chalky tannins.
97+ Points Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate (June 2025)
Angus a la minute, mushroom ragout, roasted baby parsnips
Barbaresco 2021, Our Price $637
The 2021 classic Barbaresco from Gaja is drop-dead gorgeous. Made with 14 estate vineyards that are vinified separately before being assembled into the final blend, it’s all about finesse, delivering sensations of juicy raspberry, red cherry, cinnamon, camphor and white pepper before a long, star anise and saline mineral close. Taut, refined tannins and bright acidity provide the age-worthy structure.
97 Points Kerin O’ Keefe (April 2024)
A brightly jeweled ruby hue, the 2021 Barbaresco is super-expressive, with loads of wild raspberries that leap from the glass along with notes of strawberries, pressed roses, fresh orange, and violet. As it opens, it evens picks up some spice box, cigar incense, and cherry notes. Crystalline in nature and ripe, this next-level red delivers ripe, sweet tannins, great tension, and fresh, vibrant acidity, without any austerity. A luxury racecar, it’s fantastic and possibly the wine of the year.
97 Points Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com (May 2024)
Costa Russi Barbaresco 2021, Our Price $1425
Enticingly fragrant, the captivating 2021 Costa Russi has beautiful aromas of rose, violet, wild berry and crushed Alpine herb. Elegantly structured, the enticing, vibrant palate boasts succulent red berry, blood orange, white pepper, cake spice and mint alongside taut, polished tannins. Bright acidity keeps it balanced and energized. An absolute stunner.
98 Points Kerin O’ Keefe, keerinokeefe.com (April 2024)
The 2021 Barbaresco Costa Russi is a jeweled ruby color and is bright with fresh herbs, mint, cherries, thyme, and freshly dried earth. It has good volume and ripe structure on the palate and is long and cooling, with a note of fresh lavender. It also has a great, mouthwatering mineral tone with a more linear feel, but it’s powerful at the same time, with the sanguine and ripe blood orange notes that are shared across the vintage. It needs time, but wow, is it worth snapping up!
98 Points Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com(May 2024)
Sori Tildin Barbaresco 2021, Our Price $1574
A spiced profile emerges from the 2021 Barbaresco Sori Tildin, which has a bright red color and offers notes of ripe black cherries, graphite, wet stones, and darker minerals. There’s more power and backbone in this wine, as well as more depth and structure. It’s remarkably focused, with ripe tannins, fantastic purity and balance, and ripe mineral undercurrents. These 2021s are some of the best wines I’ve ever tasted from Gaja, and this one has great potential for the long haul.
98 Points Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com (May 2024)
Subtle and complex aromas of blackberries, pine needles, bark, light spices and violets. It’s really perfumed and attractive. Full-bodied and chewy, but the tannins are very, very fine. It goes on for minutes. This a brooding, muscular wine but it is very refined. One for the cellar. Best after 2028.
98 Points James Suckling, jamessuckling.com (August 2024)
Sori San Lorenzo Barbaresco 2021, Our Price $1723
Presenting a more youthful appearance, the 2021 Barbaresco Sori San Lorenzo is a complete wine already, with ripe, expressive fruit as well as notes of ripe cherry liqueur and pressed flowers. While the oak is going to need time to come together, the wine simultaneously displays broad tannins, power, weightlessness, and an intense mineral drive. It evolves rapidly in the glass, developing notes of pure cinnamon, and continues to reveal more layers over time.
100 Points Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com (May 2024)
A rather exotic and wild Sori San Lorenzo. Even flamboyant. Dried flowers and spices with bark, mushroom and dried dark cherry. Perfumed and primary with earth. Full-bodied and juicy with such fine velvety tannins that are layered and superb. So classic and soft on the palate with great length. Give these four to five years, but a classic in the making. Try after 2029.
99 Points James Suckling, jamessuckling.com(August 2024)
This rich, juicy version is packed with ripe cherry, raspberry, rose, graphite and menthol aromas and flavors. The lush, supple texture is offset by a dense line of chalky tannins that build on the finish. Showing superb balance and length, this teases you with its up-front fruit before tightening up, a foreshadowing of its potential. Best from 2027 through 2050.
98 Bruce Sanderson, Wine Spectator (November 2024)
An enchanting blend of tea and herbs tangos with grilled cherries and reconstituted currants creates an aromatic profile that's sure to turn heads. The palate is a sublime combination of fresh and preserved red berries, wild herbs, leaves, tar, and crushed stone that all work in unison, ever-evolving with each glance of the glass. Well-structured and firm, a wine of remarkable elegance. Drink from 2027
98 Points Jeff Porter, Wine Enthusiast (December 2024)