Red

San Marzano Cinquanta Collezione N.V.

Cantine San Marzano
Grapes
Primitivo, Negroamaro
Region
Puglia
ABV
14.5%
Drink
Now to 2027

Primitivo and Negroamaro from Puglia, blended for Cantine San Marzano's 50th anniversary. Twelve months in French oak build a full-bodied, soft red of prune, vanilla and licorice. A southern Italian red that drinkers love, for braised meat and game.

Best price
£19.98

75cl · checked 25 Oct · Delivery charged at checkout

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Where to buy San Marzano Cinquanta Collezione N.V.

£19.98 best price · 5 retailers in stock · checked 25 Oct 2026

Stock is shown where the retailer publishes it, offers are sorted by price, and unavailable offers can’t be clicked.

8wines Best price Not stated · 75cl · checked 25 Oct · Delivery charged at checkout Code NEWCUST8J: Enter NEWCUST8J to get £8 off with the minimum wine order of £88. Valid only for new customers, until 31 Dec 2027
Read from the retailer's page once a day. Confidence is low, so treat it as a guide and confirm at the retailer.
£19.98 £26.64/L
Buy
Vino.com Best price Not stated · 75cl · checked 25 Oct · Delivery usually £16.90, free on 6 bottles Code WINE6R8T: £17 off your first wine order with £180 minimum spend, until 13 Jan 2028
Read from the retailer's page once a day. Confidence is low, so treat it as a guide and confirm at the retailer.
£22.50 £30.00/L
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Svinando Best price Not stated · 75cl · checked 22 Oct · Delivery £8.90, free on 4 bottles
Read from the retailer's page once a day. Confidence is low, so treat it as a guide and confirm at the retailer.
£27.40 £36.53/L
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Great Wines Direct Best price Not stated · 75cl · checked 25 Oct · Delivery £7.95, min 6 bottles
Read from the retailer's page once a day. Confidence is low, so treat it as a guide and confirm at the retailer.
£27.94 £37.25/L
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Cellier Best price Not stated · 75cl · checked 25 Oct · Delivery £5.99, free on 3 bottles
Read from the retailer's page once a day. Confidence is low, so treat it as a guide and confirm at the retailer.
£27.99 £37.32/L
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Vino.com Best price Not stated · Magnum 150cl · checked 25 Oct · Delivery usually £16.90, free on 3 bottles Code WINE6R8T: £17 off your first wine order with £180 minimum spend, until 13 Jan 2028
Read from the retailer's page once a day. Confidence is low, so treat it as a guide and confirm at the retailer.
£63.50 £42.33/L
Buy

Stock status is read from each retailer’s page once a day and may lag. Case and magnum listings show a per-bottle or per-litre equivalent and sit outside the best-price figure.

Tasting Notes

Prune, vanilla and licorice: tasting Collezione Cinquanta

Twelve months in French oak shape this Primitivo and Negroamaro blend, giving prune and red jam over vanilla and licorice. Oak, vanilla and chocolate come first in the glass, then plum and blackberry.

Tasted by
ItalianWines editorial
Tasted on
11 June 2026
Source
Drinker consensus · confidence Medium
Typical of Primitivo
Body Light / Full
Tannins Smooth / Grippy
Sweetness Dry / Sweet
Acidity Soft / Crisp
Nose

The nose is ripe and oak-sweet: prune and red jam meet vanilla and liquorice, the signature of this blend. Twelve months in French oak push vanilla, chocolate and toast, lifted by old-vine Primitivo from the Sessantanni Valley.

BlackberryBlackberry
CherryCherry
PlumPlum
PrunePrune
LeatherLeather
OakOak
LiquoriceLiquorice
VanillaVanilla
ChocolateChocolate
Palate

The palate is full-bodied and soft, with the warmth of 14.5% behind plum and blackberry fruit. Negroamaro brings a faint savoury, leathery edge, while Primitivo carries the appassimento-ripe sweetness. Acidity is gentle, and the tannin is round rather than gripping.

Finish

The finish is long and warm. It closes on liquorice, dried fig and the sweet spice of French oak rather than firm grip.

Overall

This is a non-vintage cuvee built for Cantine San Marzano's 50th anniversary, sitting just below the old-vine Sessantanni in the range. Drinkers like it, year after year: it is one for those who love bold, oak-sweet southern reds. It is also the wine Luca Maroni twice called Italy's best red.

Drink now Best by 2027
Live UK pricing

Where to buy Collezione Cinquanta in the UK

Three UK retailers currently list the wine between about 22 and 28 pounds a bottle, in standard 750ml format. Stock moves between merchants, so the live table below is the place to compare price and availability.

Best price · 75 cl · NV £19.98 at 8wines
Price spread · 75cl · NV £19.98 - £27.99 Across 5 UK retailers with 75cl · NV in stock
Retailers · 75cl · NV 5UK 5 in stock
Vintages live NV Current release: NV
Per-litre (75cl · NV basis) £26.64 Lowest current 75cl · NV offer
Last checked 25 Oct 2026 Refreshed once every 24 hours
Other vintages and formats: 1 price line

Magnum 150cl · NV: £63.50, 1 UK retailer

Wine fit score

Italian Wine Fit Score for Collezione Cinquanta

Six dimensions score how this Puglian blend performs for food, value, beginners, cellaring, everyday drinking and special occasions, weighted to its soft, oak-aged, low-£20s profile.

Best value 8.6/10

At about 22 to 28 pounds for an oak-aged blend that Luca Maroni named Italy's best red at 98 points, it sits well below comparably decorated reds.

Best intro to this style 8.2/10

Ripe, soft and oak-sweet with no austere tannin or sharp acidity, it is an easy, classic southern-Italian style for newer drinkers.

Best with food 7.4/10

Full-bodied and soft with low acidity, it is a specialist for rich red meat, game and aged cheese rather than an all-round match for fish, vegetables or chilli heat.

Best for an occasion 7.0/10

An award-laden anniversary cuvee that gives generously at the table, though it lacks the top-tier denomination prestige of a DOCG occasion wine.

Best everyday bottle 5.6/10

Soft and approachable enough for a midweek roast, but the low-20s price and 14.5% weight push it past a true everyday red.

Best for cellar 3.2/10

A non-vintage Vino d'Italia aged before release with no ageing mandate and a drink window to about 2027, so there is little reason to lay it down.

Scoring is rule-based and deterministic. The model and weightings are documented in our Wine Fit Score methodology.

Vintages

A non-vintage Salento blend, built in 2012

Collezione Cinquanta carries no harvest year. Cantine San Marzano launched it for its 50th anniversary as a non-vintage cuvee, assembled for a consistent house style rather than a single growing season.

NV Non-vintage
Best price
£19.98
Retailers
6 in stock
ABV
14.5%
Window
Drink now through 2027

A non-vintage Salento blend assembled for a consistent house style rather than a single harvest. The current release drinks well now through about 2027 (Tannico), showing ripe, oak-softened fruit; there is no cellaring upside, so open it young.

NV Non-vintage
Best price
£19.98
Retailers
6 in stock
ABV
14.5%
Window
Drink now through 2027

A non-vintage Salento blend assembled for a consistent house style rather than a single harvest. The current release drinks well now through about 2027 (Tannico), showing ripe, oak-softened fruit; there is no cellaring upside, so open it young.

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.

The place, the label, the price

What sits behind a £24 San Marzano blend

Three things set the price: old-vine Primitivo from the Sessantanni Valley, 12 months in French oak, and a wall of medals, including Luca Maroni's 'Best Red Wine of Italy' at 98 points. They explain why this Vino d'Italia sits in the low 20s rather than at supermarket prices.

03

Region and area context

San Marzano Cinquanta Collezione N.V. falls within Puglia.

The zone the estate stands in The producer

Made at Cantine San Marzano, San Marzano S. G.. Directions

04

Reading the label

  • Cantine San MarzanoProducer / estate
  • Primitivo · NegroamaroGrape varieties
  • 14.5% vol · 75 clAlcohol by volume and bottle size
05

What sits behind the price of San Marzano Cinquanta Collezione N.V.

Tracked from
£19.98
Direction
Mostly cost up
Drivers
5 up / 1 down
Main factor
Old-vine Primitivo from the Sessantanni Valley
  1. 01

    Old-vine Primitivo from the Sessantanni Valley

    Cost up

    Half the blend is Primitivo from old bush vines in San Marzano's Sessantanni Valley, hand-picked in early September, which lifts fruit cost well above bulk Puglian red.

  2. 02

    Twelve months in French oak barrels

    Cost up

    Malolactic in steel then 12 months in French oak, per the producer, adds barrel and cellar cost rarely seen under 15 pounds and underpins the 22 to 28 pound UK price.

  3. 03

    Appassimento-ripe concentration of native grapes

    Cost up

    Primitivo and Negroamaro are vinified for ripe, dried-fruit concentration, lowering usable yield per hectare and raising the cost per bottle.

  4. 04

    Vino Rosso d'Italia classification, not DOP

    Cost down

    Labelled as Vino Rosso d'Italia rather than a DOC or DOCG, it avoids appellation levies and release-tasting fees, holding the price near 24 pounds despite the oak.

  5. 05

    UK duty and VAT on a still wine

    Cost up

    UK alcohol duty of about 2.67 pounds per still bottle at 2026 rates, plus 20% VAT, account for several pounds of the roughly 24 pound shelf price before retailer margin.

  6. 06

    Award pull from Luca Maroni and Mundus Vini

    Cost up

    Repeated top scores, including Luca Maroni's Best Red Wine of Italy at 98 points and Mundus Vini Grand Gold, sustain demand and keep the price firm versus unawarded Puglian blends.

01

Old-vine Primitivo from the Sessantanni Valley

Cost up

Half the blend is Primitivo from old bush vines in San Marzano's Sessantanni Valley, hand-picked in early September, which lifts fruit cost well above bulk Puglian red.

Food Pairing

Soft tannin, ripe fruit: dishes that fit Cinquanta

This is a full-bodied, low-acid red with soft, ripe tannin, so it leans to rich red meat rather than light or acidic plates. Beef, lamb, veal and game are its natural partners.

Body matching Strong match

Slow-braised beef and southern lamb ragu

The wine's full body and soft, ripe tannin match the weight of slow-braised meat, while 12 months of French oak echo the caramelised, marrow-rich sauces. Low acidity keeps it comfortable against long-cooked, fatty dishes.

Try with: Brasato al Barolo · Agnello Ragu Lucano · Ossobuco alla Milanese · More pairings →

Fat cutting Strong match

Chargrilled and prime steak

Ripe tannin and 14.5% warmth cut through the fat and char of a grilled steak, and the oak-sweet dark fruit flatters a crust of Maillard browning. Body meets body, so the wine is not flattened by the meat.

Try with: Fiorentina steak · Ribeye steak · Sirloin steak · More pairings →

Tannin softening Good match

Roast lamb

Lamb's protein and fat soften the wine's already-round tannin, letting the prune and licorice come forward. The soft structure suits roast joints better than a tight, high-tannin red would.

Try with: Roast Lamb with Mint Sauce · Leg of lamb · Rack of lamb · More pairings →

Aromatic bridge Good match

Game and roast duck

The dried-fruit and licorice aromatics bridge to the savoury, gamey character of venison and duck. Soft tannin and ripe fruit balance the lean, iron-rich meat without drying the palate.

Try with: Venison Stew · Roast Duck · Duck breast · More pairings →

Salt balance Good match

Aged pecorino and the cheese board

Ripe, oak-sweet fruit and soft tannin balance the salt and fat of aged sheep's cheese, a classic southern Italian match for a big Primitivo-led red. Best with hard, mature cheeses rather than fresh or blue styles.

Try with: Pecorino sardo e pan carasau · Cheese board

Avoid Clash

Chilli heat and sweet-sour sauces

At 14.5% the alcohol amplifies chilli heat, turning spicy dishes harsh, and the oak-sweet fruit clashes with sweet-sour and heavily sugared sauces. Reach for an aromatic Falanghina or a lighter Sicilian Frappato with these plates instead.

Skip with: Crispy chilli beef · Szechuan beef · Sweet and sour pork · Lamb bhuna · Pairing guide →

Drinking + cellar

Drink Collezione Cinquanta now, not in a decade

As a non-vintage blend aged before release, it is built to drink on purchase. The current release shows well now through about 2027, with no meaningful upside to cellaring it further.

Drinking window
2024 → 2027

Best in the years above; holds without falling over either side.

Decanting
1 hour

A short splash decant softens the first-pour edge and opens the aromatics.

Serving temperature
16-18°C

Aim for the cooler end on a warm day; warmer end opens up more aromatics.

Cellar potential
Low

A non-vintage Vino d'Italia aged before release with no ageing mandate and a drink window to about 2027, so there is little reason to lay it down.

Buy now or wait?
Buy now

£19.98 for a 75cl bottle, at 8wines, is the best price we track, and we have no signal of further discounting.

Sources & trust

How we sourced this page on Collezione Cinquanta

Prices & stock

Read directly from each retailer’s public product page once a day. Last refresh: 25 Oct 2026, 04:51 BST. We do not hold stock and we do not accept payment for placement.

Confidence · High
Tasting notes

Drawn from published drinker ratings, summarised in our own words. A crowd read across many tasters, not a single critic.

Confidence · Medium
Why it costs what it costs

Our 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 · Medium
Drink window & cellar potential

Style guidance for this kind of wine at this price point. Treat it as advice, not a forecast for the bottle in your hand.

Confidence · Medium
Related

Explore Cantine San Marzano, Primitivo and Negroamaro

Producer
Cantine San Marzano Puglia
Grapes
Primitivo Negroamaro
Region
Puglia Region guide

Common Questions

A blend of Primitivo and Negroamaro, the two native red grapes of Salento in Puglia. Cantine San Marzano draws the Primitivo from old bush vines in its Sessantanni Valley and the Negroamaro from old Salento vineyards.

It was created in 2012 for the 50th anniversary of Cantine San Marzano (founded 1962). It is assembled as a non-vintage cuvee for consistency, so no single harvest year appears on the label. It is classified as Vino Rosso d'Italia rather than a DOC or DOCG.

Full-bodied and soft, with prune and red jam, vanilla and licorice from 12 months in French oak. Oak, vanilla and chocolate lead, then plum and blackberry, over a warm 14.5% frame.

Braised beef, southern lamb ragu, chargrilled steak, game and aged pecorino. The wine's body and soft, ripe tannin stand up to rich red meat, while its oak-sweet fruit flatters slow-cooked sauces.

At around 22 to 28 pounds it is strong value for an award magnet that Luca Maroni named Italy's best red at 98 points. The current release drinks well now through about 2027; there is no cellaring upside, so open it young.

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San Marzano Cinquanta Collezione N.V.
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