Ornellaia
Le Volte dell'Ornellaia is the convivial entry red of the Bolgheri estate, a Toscana IGT blend of Merlot, Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon. Bright cherry and wild berry meet rose and a menthol lift, over fresh, supple tannins.
A Merlot-led Bolgheri blend built for early pleasure: red cherry and wild strawberry, a rose and menthol lift, then supple tannins from ten months in used barriques and concrete. Vivino's drinkers settle around 4.0 stars across more than 100,000 ratings.
Red cherry and wild strawberry lead, lifted by the rose and menthol note Tenuta dell'Ornellaia calls out in young Le Volte. With air, Vivino's tasters find blackberry and a whiff of tobacco and pepper from the Merlot, Sangiovese and Cabernet blend.
Rose petal
Blackberry
Cherry
Plum
Mint
Tobacco
Black pepper
VanillaMedium-bodied and rounded: Merlot supplies the flesh at 70 percent of the blend, Sangiovese the bright acidity and the 15 percent Cabernet Sauvignon a little spine. Ten months in third-passage barriques and concrete keeps oak in the background, so plum and cherry stay fresh over fine, supple tannins.
The close is fresh and savoury with a touch of black pepper, the silky tannins Ornellaia builds for early drinking rather than long cellaring.
Le Volte dell'Ornellaia is the estate's convivial entry red and an easy first step into the Ornellaia name. Vivino's 100,000-plus drinkers settle around 4.0 stars, and Wine Spectator scored the 2016 release 92 points. Drink it young and often.
The 2023 and 2024 vintages run roughly 19 to 32 pounds across UK merchants. As Tenuta dell'Ornellaia's entry red it is made in large volumes, so stock stays steady rather than allocated like the grand vin.
How Tenuta dell'Ornellaia's entry Bolgheri red, an early-drinking Toscana IGT near 20 pounds, scores for food, value, beginners, cellaring, everyday drinking and special occasions.
Sangiovese acidity and supple Merlot tannin make it a flexible food red across pasta, roast meats and cheese.
Soft, fruit-forward and low in oak, an easy introduction to Tuscan blends and the Ornellaia name.
Versatile, soft and well under 25 pounds, a genuine weeknight red.
At about 19 to 24 pounds it undercuts most wines carrying a Bolgheri grand-vin estate name, fair rather than a bargain for a Toscana IGT.
Scoring is rule-based and deterministic. The model and weightings are documented in our editorial methodology.
A compact view of what the Toscana denomination actually requires, and how this bottle sits inside it. Pulled from the official Italian disciplinare.
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Le Volte is made for freshness, so vintage shows as weight and perfume more than ageability. Bolgheri 2023 largely escaped the downy mildew that cut inland Tuscan yields; 2024 was a cooler, rainier season giving a lighter, more aromatic style.
An unusually cool, rainy Tuscan season gave a lighter, more perfumed Le Volte. The 2024 shows bright cherry and wild strawberry with a mentholated lift, best enjoyed young while that freshness holds, to about 2029.
A warm, dry Bolgheri summer after a wet spring, and the coast largely escaped the downy mildew that cut inland Tuscan yields. The 2023 Le Volte is generous and rounded, with ripe blueberry and blackberry and silky tannins, for drinking now to about 2030.
Drink-now / hold guidance reflects general style cues for this wine, not a forecast for a specific bottle. Where vintage-level editorial notes exist, they appear above.
Tenuta dell'Ornellaia sits at Bolgheri on the Tuscan coast, the estate behind the Super Tuscan Ornellaia. Le Volte is its convivial entry red, a Merlot, Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon blend aged ten months in third-passage barriques and concrete vats.
Italian wine law sorts bottles into a pyramid. DOCG sits at the top: tightly drawn boundaries, prescribed grapes, mandatory ageing, government tasting before release. DOC is the same idea with looser thresholds. IGT (Indicazione Geografica Tipica) is broader still, requiring only that 85% of the grapes come from the named territory.
Toscana is in the IGT tier. That is not a quality verdict, it is a description of how much freedom the producer has at vinification and ageing.
Toscana falls within Tuscany , covering Tuscany.
Grapes grown and selected by one of Bolgheri's grand-vin estates carry a quality and brand premium an anonymous Toscana IGT cannot.
70 percent Merlot with 15 percent each Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon, fermented separately, adds cellar labour over a single-vat bulk red.
Le Volte sees only third-passage barriques and concrete, not the new French oak of Ornellaia itself, a deliberate choice that keeps it the estate's affordable red.
Le Volte is made in far larger quantities than Ornellaia, spreading fixed costs and holding it near 20 pounds rather than the grand vin's three-figure price.
UK duty on a 13.5 percent still wine is 2.67 pounds a bottle and VAT adds a fifth on top, together roughly 6.70 pounds of a 24-pound shelf price.
Frescobaldi's UK distribution plus importer and retailer margins lift the cellar price to the 19 to 32 pounds seen across UK merchants.
Dishes that complement this wine
Sangiovese acidity and Merlot flesh make Le Volte a tomato-and-roast-meat wine. The estate pours it with meat-sauce pasta, grilled and braised beef, white meats and aged cheeses.
Sangiovese gives Le Volte the acidity to match tomato's own, while 70 percent Merlot adds the flesh a ragu needs. It cuts through cheese and slow-cooked sauce without turning sharp.
Try with: Lasagna · Pizza Margherita · Pizza Marinara · More pairings →
The fine, supple tannins bind to the protein and fat in seared and braised beef, softening on the palate as the meat tenderises them. Medium body means it partners the dish rather than burying it.
Try with: Fiorentina steak · Brasato al Barolo · Spezzatino di pecora · More pairings →
Bright acidity and a peppery edge slice through the fat of herb-roasted pork, refreshing the palate between bites of crackling and salume.
Try with: Porchetta · Cotoletta alla bolognese · Pizza Diavola · More pairings →
The menthol lift and black-pepper note that run through the Merlot and Sangiovese aromatics bridge to peppered, herb-scented cooking, echoing the dish instead of fighting it.
Try with: Pizza Diavola · Porchetta · Agnello Ragu Lucano · More pairings →
Medium weight and fresh fruit make this an everyday board red. It balances the salt and fat of aged pecorino without overpowering it the way a bigger Tuscan red would.
Try with: Pecorino sardo e pan carasau · More pairings →
Capsaicin amplifies the tannin and alcohol into heat, and the wine's fruit and grip flatten delicate sushi and oysters. Pour a crisp Vermentino or Fiano with those instead.
Skip with: Vindaloo · Sichuan hot pot · Sushi · Oysters · Pairing guide →
Le Volte is built to drink, not to hoard. Ten months in used oak and concrete keeps the fruit fresh and the tannins soft, so most bottles drink best within four to five years of the vintage.
Best in the years above; holds without falling over either side.
A short splash decant softens the first-pour edge and opens the aromatics.
Made for freshness with ten months in used barriques and concrete; little tannin or structure for long ageing.
£19.23 is the lowest tracked offer for the current vintage and we have no signal of further discounting.
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Confidence · HighDrawn from what drinkers consistently report on Vivino and Wine-Searcher, summarised in our own words. A crowd read across many tasters, not a single critic.
Confidence · MediumFrom the official Italian disciplinare for this denomination, cross-checked against the Ministry of Agriculture register.
Confidence · HighOur reading of the price, drawn from the disciplinare, public UK duty rates, and typical landed-cost benchmarks. Not a quote from the producer or a retailer.
Confidence · MediumStyle guidance for this kind of wine at this price point. Treat it as advice, not a forecast for the bottle in your hand.
Confidence · MediumIt is a Toscana IGT blend of roughly 70 percent Merlot, 15 percent Sangiovese and 15 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, each parcel vinified separately at Tenuta dell'Ornellaia in Bolgheri.
Yes. It is the entry red of Tenuta dell'Ornellaia, the Bolgheri estate behind the Super Tuscan Ornellaia, made as the affordable, everyday wine in the range.
It is built for early drinking. Aged ten months in used barriques and concrete, most vintages are at their best within four to five years of harvest, so the 2023 and 2024 are for drinking now.
Tomato-led pasta, grilled and braised red meat, roast pork and aged pecorino. Sangiovese's acidity and Merlot's flesh make it a flexible table red.
Recent 2023 and 2024 bottles run about 19 to 32 pounds across UK merchants, one of the most affordable ways to buy a wine from the Ornellaia estate.
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