Gaja
Appellations
History
Gaja was founded in 1859 in Barbaresco by Giovanni Gaja, whose family had settled in the Piedmont village earlier; he acquired vineyards and served the estate's wine in the family tavern. The name 'Gaja' first appeared in large red letters on the label in 1937, a branding choice still used today.
Angelo Gaja, the founder's great-grandson (born 1940), joined the family business in 1961 and reshaped both the estate and the reputation of Barbaresco itself. He cut yields, introduced single-vineyard bottlings from the estate's best crus (Sori San Lorenzo, first from the plot bought in 1964; Sori Tildin and Costa Russi from vineyards acquired in 1967), and brought in modern cellar techniques including French barriques for part of the aging. In 1996 he chose to declassify the three single-vineyard crus from Barbaresco DOCG to Langhe Nebbiolo DOC, in part so a small percentage of Barbera could be blended in; these wines returned to Barbaresco DOCG status starting with the 2013 vintage.
Gaja later expanded beyond Barbaresco into Barolo, with the Sperss vineyard in Serralunga d'Alba (acquired 1988, first released 1992) and Conteisa in the Cerequio cru of La Morra (acquired 1995), and into Tuscany with Pieve Santa Restituta in Montalcino (1994) and Ca'Marcanda in Bolgheri (1996). Since 2004 the estate has been run by Angelo's children, the fifth generation: Gaia, Rossana, and Giovanni Gaja.