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The legendary, visionary and extremely charismatic Angelo Gaja took over the winery founded by Giovanni Gaja in 1859 in 1961 at the age of just 21. With his excellent products, he made a significant contribution to establishing Italian wines internationally, even though many of his bold and far-sighted decisions were highly controversial for a long time. His approach, with meticulous clone selection, minimal yields, temperature control during fermentation, ageing in new barriques and, ultimately, the use of international grape varieties, initially caused a storm of indignation in traditional Piedmont.
Gaja's wineries now stretch from Tuscany to Sicily. In 1994, he bought Tenuta Pieve Santa Restituta in the south-west of Montalcino, followed in 1996 by the Ca' Marcanda winery, based in Castagneto Carducci in Bolgheri. With a strong sense of tradition but incredible foresight, Angelo Gaja has built up an impressive company, where his children Gaia, Rossana and Giovanni are now continuing the story.