Wineries and vineyards for sale in Livorno

Livorno is an Italian city located in Tuscany. Today it is an industrial centre and free port on the shores of the Mediterranean.

Livorno was born as a small fishing village, originally a town near the ancient and now defunct port of Pisa. The city later came under the domination of the Visconti and then Genoese before being bought by Florence in the 15th century. It was founded as a real city in 1606 by the Grand Duke of Tuscany. The city has always been open to Jews, who flourished here, and many famous Livornese belonged to the city's Jewish quarter, such as Amedeo Modigliani and Elia Benamozegh. An important place under the Medici in the Renaissance with important concessions in the 16th century, Livorno grew during the government of Leopold II of Tuscany in the 18th century, who opened the city to foreign merchants and traders. Cosimo I de' Medici decided to make it the main port of the Grand Duchy and Ferdinand I de' Medici declared the city a free port in 1590, and this lasted until 1860, when the city became part of the Kingdom of Italy.

HISTORY OF WINE

The Etruscan Coast Wine Route is about 150 kilometres long and stretches between the provinces of Livorno and Pisa, along the Tyrrhenian coast and reaching the island of Elba.

From the Livorno area the best-known wine is Sassicaia, but we must not forget Terratico di Bibbona and Montescudaio, all DOC wines that encapsulate the flavours of this corner of Tuscany overlooking the sea. Aleatico Passito is produced on the island of Elba.

When the Marquis Mario Incisa della Rocchetta, passionate about French wines, imported some Cabernet cuttings in 1944 to the Castiglioncello vineyard, convinced that great red wines in the style of Bordeaux wines could be made in the upper Maremma terroir of Livorno, he surprised the entire world. The vineyards were in Castagneto Carducci, in Bolgheri (Livorno), near the Tyrrhenian Sea in an area where there was no history of vine cultivation. That gamble gave rise to the current DOC Bolgheri Sassicaia, the only Italian DOC 'monopole', dedicated to a single wine, and which constituted the model to follow throughout the area, that of Bolgheri, which delights us today with gems such as Paleo, Grattamacco, Argentiera, Orma, Camarcanda or Guado al Tasso.

We have to go back to 1968, when the Marquis Niccolò Incisa della Rochetta created the first great Tuscan wine without a historical designation of origin: Sassicaia, a Bordeaux-style wine made from Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Three years later, another family member and Marquis, the Antinori, presented Tignanello, with a majority of the local Sangiovese grape. Then came Solaia and the rest. At that time, the American press gave these challenging wines a name: "Super Tuscans".

Mention should also be made of Enzo Morganti, who produced an impressive Vigorello at the San Felice winery as early as 1968, and of the winemaker Giacomo Tachis, who was the winemaker at the forefront of creating these two inimitable Super Tuscan wines. As he liked to repeat: "Io non sono un enologo, sono un mescolavino" (I am not a winemaker, I am a wine blender). The Super Tuscans, in fact, are born thanks to experiments, such as Sassicaia in Bolgheri in 1968 (85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Cabernet Franc).

It was in 1981 that the Marquis Lodovico Antinori, cousin of Piero Antinori, founded Tenuta Ornellaia, in the heart of the Bolgheri area. First there was Ornellaia which celebrated its first vintage in 1985, closely followed by the intense Masseto. With the first vintage of 1985 was born what would become an icon among the Super Tuscans: the "Ornellaia". Then, after the debut of Masseto in 1987, a 7ha plot planted in Bolgheri with soils suitable for the Merlot grape, the success was superlative. Masseto's home is the well-known wine village of Bolgheri, a district of the Castagneto Carducci community near the Tyrrhenian coast in Maremma, about 60 kilometres south of Livorno. Ornellaia, a legendary winery that has the merit of having written the history of Bolgheri.

WINES AND WINERIES

The province of Livorno is renowned for its prestigious winemaking areas, with Bolgheri being one of the most celebrated and internationally recognized wine regions in Tuscany. The area is particularly famous for producing some of the finest wines in Italy, including Bordeaux-style reds, and is a symbol of modern Tuscan viticulture.

Among the DOCs, the Bolgheri DOC stands out as the flagship designation of the region. Bolgheri is renowned for its production of high-quality wines, primarily red, made from a blend of international grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, alongside the native Sangiovese. This area has earned a global reputation for its ability to produce wines with exceptional depth, complexity, and elegance. The Bolgheri Superiore DOC, a subset of this designation, is especially esteemed for its powerful and age-worthy wines.

Another important DOC in the region is Val di Cornia DOC, which spans the hills of Livorno and the coast, producing both reds and whites of high quality from a mix of native and international grape varieties.

The Rosso di Bolgheri DOC is a younger, more accessible wine from the same Bolgheri region, but still reflects the area's signature style and quality.

The Suvereto DOCG denomination is reserved for wines that, in their typologies, are vinified from grapes of the following vines:

Suvereto DOCG: Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in variable proportions

Suvereto Sangiovese DOCG: Sangiovese min. 85%

Suvereto Merlot DOCG: Merlot min. 85%

Suvereto Cabernet Sauvignon DOCG: Cabernet Sauvignon min. 85%

The production area includes the entire territory of the municipality of Suvereto, in the province of Livorno (Tuscany).

Aleatico Passito dell'Elba DOCG is a sweet red wine. The area includes all the municipalities of the island of Elba, which forms part of the province of Livorno. Favorite wine of Napoleon on his destination on the island of Elba. The wine must be made from 100% pure Aleatico grapes. The grapes are dried in hard Madeira bastidores for an average of two weeks. If the grapes are classified vineyards, you can indicate Vigna followed by the name of the vineyard.

The Terre di Toscana IGT designation also applies to some of the wines produced in Livorno, including those in the Bolgheri area, showcasing a broader range of premium wines made from both native and international grapes. Bolgheri is especially renowned as the land of some of the most famous IGT wines in the world, with labels like Sassicaia, Ornellaia, and Guado al Tasso standing out internationally.

As for DOCGs, while Livorno does not have its own specific DOCG wines, Bolgheri’s Bolgheri DOC is often regarded with the same prestige as DOCGs due to its remarkable quality and the reputation it has built in the wine world.

Bolgheri’s influence on the winemaking landscape of Tuscany cannot be overstated, as its wines have become a symbol of quality, innovation, and tradition. The region’s proximity to the coast and its unique terroir give Bolgheri wines their signature character, making them a cornerstone of Livorno’s viticultural identity.

POINTS OF INTEREST

Due to the military and commercial strategies of the Medici, it was decided that the fishing village built around the Matilda Tower of Canossa should become one of the main ports of Europe. The testimonies of the "Nations" that contributed to the emergence and development of a port known throughout the Mediterranean are still present in the religious buildings, cemeteries, archives and gastronomy of the city.

The project of renovating the city under the Medici was entrusted to none other than Buontalenti, who was responsible for the configuration of the historic centre as a fortified city and the construction of the Fortezza Nuova (New Fortress), erected a short distance from the Fortezza Vecchia (Old Fortress), built during the time under Pisan rule. Unfortunately, Livorno suffered heavy bombings during the Second World War, which did not spare the central core. The post-war reconstruction greatly changed the appearance of the old town, despite efforts to preserve the aesthetic value of the eighteenth-century Venezia Nuova district, which can now be considered the true historic centre. The district takes its name from its canals, which connect it to the port and make it look like a small Venice.

The city experienced great artistic and cultural vitality between the 19th and 20th centuries, giving rise to figures such as Pietro Mascagni, Giovanni Fattori, Amedeo Modigliani and Leonetto Cappiello, to name but a few.

The first seaside resorts in Europe were built here in Livorno in the 19th century, and with them came the idea of ​​spending holidays at the sea. Today it is a much-loved tourist destination, thanks in particular to the numerous beaches of the Etruscan Coast, which extend from the city to the south. But there are also many sights in the city, such as the Mascagni terrace, the 17th-century cathedral of San Francesco and the baroque church of Santa Caterina.