[The Gourmand Next Door] What's So Super About "Super Tuscans?"

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Southpoint AccessWes Platt

Our last foray into Tuscany is a rebellious one. For all the rules that govern wines in this region, there have been a few pirates guiding their ships through the seas of individuality.

From what we’ve gleaned in examining Tuscany, it’s essential to discuss why the English moniker “super” has been applied to these wines. It’s more than defiance, but there’s a lot of that, too.

What it means to be super

We’re going to go about things in a slightly labyrinthine manner, but it should all make sense in the end. Let’s consider what the term “super” means, if anything, in relation to Tuscan wine.

The term is commonly credited to British wine writer Nicolas Belfrage in the mid-1980s. It described wines coming out of Tuscany that were achieving acclaim despite falling outside the established wine classifications. Just what were the rules that excluded them from recognition, and did those rules make any sense? There are two immediate yet separate issues to address.