IGT Red

San Marzano 'F' Negroamaro, Salento IGP

Cantine San Marzano
Grape
Negroamaro
Denomination
Salento IGT
Region
Puglia
ABV
14.5%
Drink
Now to 2032

San Marzano's 'F' is a 100% Negroamaro from three Monte La Conca vineyards in Salento, aged 12 months in French and Caucasian oak. Deep and velvety, ripe with plum, cherry and chocolate, it is a Tre Bicchieri red for red meat, game and aged cheese.

Best price
£23.68

2021 · 75cl · checked 25 Oct · Delivery charged at checkout

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Vintages 2022 2021

Prices read daily from 4 UK retailers. We earn a commission on some links; it never changes the order.

Where to buy San Marzano, 'F Metal Label', Negroamaro

£23.68 best price · 4 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 2021 · 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.
£23.68 £31.57/L
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XtraWine Best price 2022 · 75cl · checked 25 Oct · Delivery charge shown at checkout
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£27.00 £36.00/L
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Vino.com Best price 2022 · 75cl · checked 25 Oct · Delivery usually £16.90, free on 5 bottles Code WINE6R8T: £17 off your first wine order with £180 minimum spend, until 13 Jan 2028
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£27.90 £37.20/L
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Great Wines Direct Best price 2022 · 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.
£28.68 £38.24/L
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Stock status is read from each retailer’s page once a day and may lag.

Tasting Notes

Inside San Marzano's 'F' Negroamaro

Plum, blackberry and a vanilla-and-chocolate oak frame from 12 months in French and Caucasian barrels: a Salento Negroamaro that drinkers like, year after year.

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

Very deep purple in the glass. The 'F' opens on ripe plum, blackberry and cherry jam, a black-fruit core you cannot miss. Twelve months in French and Caucasian oak layer vanilla, sweet spice and a lift of black pepper over the fruit.

Black cherryBlack cherry
BlackberryBlackberry
PlumPlum
LeatherLeather
Black pepperBlack pepper
LiquoriceLiquorice
VanillaVanilla
ChocolateChocolate
Palate

Full-bodied and warm at 14.5%, it is soft and broadly textured. Fine, polished tannins carry rather than grip. Fruit from the iron-rich red soils of Monte La Conca stays ripe and generous. Chocolate and mocha from the oak frame it, as prominent as the fruit itself.

Finish

True to the wine's long, savoury house style, the close lingers with a bittersweet Negroamaro twist under cocoa and dried fig. Those are the marks the French and Caucasian oak left behind.

Overall

This is a polished, crowd-pleasing Salento red that drinkers like, year after year. It has also taken Gambero Rosso Tre Bicchieri and Luca Maroni's top Italian red award. Drink it with rich food over the next five to ten years. It suits a generous southern style more than a restrained one.

Drink now Best by 2032
Live UK pricing

Buying San Marzano 'F' in the UK

Two UK retailers stock the 2021 and 2022 vintages at about £27 to £29 a bottle. That is a Tre Bicchieri Negroamaro priced well below DOCG reds of similar oak ageing.

Best price · 75 cl · 2021 £23.68 at 8wines
75cl · 2021 available from 8wines £23.68, in stock
Vintages live 2022 · 2021 Current release: 2022
Per-litre (75cl · 2021 basis) £31.57 Lowest current 75cl · 2021 offer
Last checked 25 Oct 2026 Refreshed once every 24 hours
Other vintages and formats: 1 price line

75cl · 2022: £27.00 - £28.68, 3 UK retailers

Wine fit score

How 'F' Negroamaro scores for your table

Scored from its Salento IGP fruit, 14.5% body and £28 price band. A generous, food-friendly red that flatters beginners more than it suits an everyday midweek pour.

Best with food 8.8/10

Bold but balanced, fine-tannined and savoury, it shines with the red meat, game and aged cheese the producer names.

Best intro to this style 8.3/10

A ripe, soft, generous indigenous-grape red with low astringency and crowd-pleasing fruit, an easy first Negroamaro.

Best value 7.2/10

At about £28 for a Tre Bicchieri, Luca Maroni 98-point Negroamaro, strong quality for the price though above entry-level Puglia.

Best for an occasion 7.0/10

A heavily awarded, gift-ready metal-label bottle that suits dinners and gatherings, short of grand-occasion fine-wine status.

Best for cellar 5.8/10

IGP carries no ageing mandate, but 12 months oak, fine tannin and the producer's five-to-ten-year window give moderate cellar potential.

Best everyday bottle 5.4/10

Delicious but 14.5% and a £28 price push it past a true midweek pour toward weekend and special meals.

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

Denomination Compliance Snapshot

Salento in five fields

A compact view of what the Salento denomination actually requires, and how this bottle sits inside it. Pulled from the official Italian disciplinare.

Allowed grapes
51 varieties listed
This bottle: Negroamaro.
Minimum ageing
Recorded by producer
Disciplinare ageing rule not yet recorded.
Region / area
Puglia
Style
IGT · Salento
Classification
IGT (Indicazione Geografica Tipica)
What that means →
Vintages

2021 and 2022: comparing the 'F' vintages

Both vintages come from the three Monte La Conca vineyards and see 12 months in oak. The hotter 2022 leans riper and fuller, the 2021 a touch fresher.

2022 Current release
Best price
£27.00
Retailers
3 in stock
ABV
14.5%
Window
Drink now through 2032

A hot, dry 2022 across Puglia produced a riper, fuller 'F' with concentrated black fruit, generous now and through the early 2030s.

2021 Previous release
Best price
£23.68
Retailers
1 in stock
ABV
14.5%
Window
Drink now through 2031

A balanced Salento growing season gave a ripe but fresh 'F', its fine tannins built to hold into the late 2020s.

2022 Current release
Best price
£27.00
Retailers
3 in stock
ABV
14.5%
Window
Drink now through 2032

A hot, dry 2022 across Puglia produced a riper, fuller 'F' with concentrated black fruit, generous now and through the early 2030s.

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 disciplinare, the place, the label

Cantine San Marzano and the 'F' pedigree

Cantine San Marzano's 'F' has been named Italy's best red by Luca Maroni at 98 points. It has also won Tre Bicchieri, and a recent vintage scored 90 points.

01

DOC, DOCG, IGT: what the badges mean

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.

Salento 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.

02

The denomination rules, in detail

  • Allowed grapes. 51 varieties listed in the disciplinare
  • Tasting panel. No mandatory pre-release tasting
03

Region and area context

Salento 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
  • NegroamaroGrape varieties
  • Salento IGTGeographic indication and quality tier
  • 2022Vintage (year of harvest)
  • 14.5% volAlcohol by volume
05

What sits behind the price of San Marzano, 'F Metal Label', Negroamaro

Tracked from
£23.68
Direction
Mostly cost up
Drivers
5 up / 1 down
Main factor
Three Monte La Conca vineyards, hand-harvested
  1. 01

    Three Monte La Conca vineyards, hand-harvested

    Cost up

    Fruit comes from three selected estate vineyards on iron-rich red soils at Monte La Conca, hand-picked in small baskets in late September, costing far more than bulk Salento Negroamaro.

  2. 02

    12 months in French and Caucasian oak

    Cost up

    Malolactic fermentation and a year maturing in French and Caucasian oak barrels add barrel and cellar cost, and the vanilla and chocolate frame drinkers notice.

  3. 03

    Long split skin maceration with native yeasts

    Cost up

    Maceration of 18 days on 80% of the mass and 25 days on the rest, using indigenous vineyard yeasts, ties up tanks and labour versus a quick Puglian ferment.

  4. 04

    Heavy bottle and metal 'F' label

    Cost up

    The branded metal-letter label and weighty premium bottle add packaging cost that sits inside the roughly £28 UK shelf price.

  5. 05

    Salento IGP, not a DOCG

    Cost down

    Salento's flexible IGP rules carry no mandated ageing or release-tasting tax, holding the price below comparably oaked DOCG reds.

  6. 06

    UK duty and VAT

    Cost up

    At 14.5% ABV this still wine carries £2.67 UK excise duty plus 20% VAT, together roughly £7.30 of the £28 shelf price before any retailer margin.

01

Three Monte La Conca vineyards, hand-harvested

Cost up

Fruit comes from three selected estate vineyards on iron-rich red soils at Monte La Conca, hand-picked in small baskets in late September, costing far more than bulk Salento Negroamaro.

Perfect Pairings

Dishes that go with this wine

Pane Cotto on stoneware bowl with Bread, Broth, Garlic

Pane Cotto
Orecchiette con cime di rapa on stoneware bowl with Anchovy, Bread Crumbs, Broccoli Rabe

Orecchiette con cime di rapa
Cozze arraganate on stoneware bowl with Bread Crumbs, Garlic, Mussels

Cozze arraganate
Food Pairing

Negroamaro structure: dishes that fit 'F'

The producer pours 'F' with savoury first courses, red meats, game and aged cheese. Its fine tannins and ripe black fruit back those rich, salty plates.

Tannin softening Strong match

Braised lamb and slow-cooked beef

The 'F' carries fine but substantial tannins and a 14.5% frame that stand up to long-braised red meat. Its ripe black fruit echoes the caramelised, savoury depth of the dish, and the tannin clears rich, gelatinous sauce.

Try with: Braised lamb shoulder · Beef brasato al Negroamaro · Osso buco · Lamb ragù · More pairings →

Aromatic bridge Strong match

Game and rich baked pasta

San Marzano pours 'F' with game, and the match works on aroma. The wine's spice, cherry-jam and earthy leather notes bridge to the gamey, savoury character of wild boar or venison, and to oven-baked pasta.

Try with: Wild boar ragù · Venison stew · Pasta al forno · Orecchiette with meat sauce · More pairings →

Fat cutting Good match

Aged Pugliese cheeses

Tannin and savoury depth cut the fat and salt of aged sheep's and cow's cheeses, a pairing the producer names directly. The wine's sweet oak softens the sharpest, most crystalline aged rinds.

Try with: Aged Pecorino · Caciocavallo Podolico · Provolone piccante · Canestrato Pugliese · More pairings →

Body matching Good match

Hearty southern primi

Negroamaro means black-and-bitter, and that savoury edge plus the wine's full body matches tomato-rich, baked and meat-sauced southern first courses without being overwhelmed.

Try with: Orecchiette al ragù · Lasagne · Cannelloni · Baked ziti · More pairings →

Salt balance Good match

Grilled and barbecued meats

Ripe fruit and oak char complement charred, fatty grilled meat, while the fine tannin and 14.5% body keep pace with smoke and salt rub.

Try with: Grilled lamb chops · Mixed grill · Sausages · Barbecue ribs · More pairings →

Avoid Clash

Delicate seafood and fresh salads

The 14.5% body, oak and tannin overwhelm delicate white fish, raw shellfish and citrus-dressed salads, flattening their freshness and leaving the wine tasting heavy.

Skip with: Sushi · Oysters · Ceviche · Steamed sea bass · Green salad · Pairing guide →

Drinking + cellar

Cellaring San Marzano 'F' Negroamaro

San Marzano gives 'F' a drinking window of roughly five to ten years. The 12-month oak frame and fine tannins let the 2021 and 2022 hold into the late 2020s.

Drinking window
2024 → 2032

Peak around 2028. 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
Medium

IGP carries no ageing mandate, but 12 months oak, fine tannin and the producer's five-to-ten-year window give moderate cellar potential.

Buy now or wait?
Buy now

£23.68 for a 75cl bottle of the 2021, at 8wines, is the best price we track, and we have no signal of further discounting.

Sources & trust

Sources behind this 'F' Negroamaro page

Prices & stock

Read directly from each retailer’s public product page once a day. Last refresh: 25 Oct 2026, 04:09 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
Appellation rules & ageing

From the official Italian disciplinare for this denomination, cross-checked against the Ministry of Agriculture register.

Confidence · High
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 Negroamaro, Salento and Cantine San Marzano

Producer
Cantine San Marzano Puglia
Grapes
Negroamaro
Denomination
Salento IGT
Region
Puglia Region guide
Cuisine
Italian Cuisine 3 dishes paired

Common Questions

It is 100% Negroamaro, grown in three estate vineyards at Monte La Conca in Salento, Puglia, on iron-rich red soils. The 'F' stands for Feudi di San Marzano, a name central to the winery's history.

Expect deep black fruit, plum, blackberry and cherry jam, layered with vanilla, chocolate and sweet spice from 12 months in French and Caucasian oak. It is full-bodied and soft, with fine tannins and a long, savoury finish.

The producer recommends savoury first courses, red meats, game and aged cheese. Braised lamb, wild boar ragù, baked pasta and aged Pecorino all suit its fine tannin and ripe fruit. Avoid delicate seafood and fresh salads.

San Marzano gives it a drinking window of roughly five to ten years. The 12-month oak frame and fine tannins let the 2021 and 2022 vintages hold and develop into the late 2020s and early 2030s.

Yes. Drinkers like it, year after year, and the critics agree. It has won Tre Bicchieri and been named Italy's best red at 98 points. A recent vintage scored 90 points with James Suckling.

UK retailers list the 2021 and 2022 vintages at roughly £27 to £29 a bottle. That is below many DOCG reds of comparable oak ageing and critical acclaim.

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San Marzano, 'F Metal Label', Negroamaro
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