Sassicaia Tenuta San Guido 2019

Sassicaia Tenuta San Guido, Bolgheri, Tuscany, Italy, 2019

Grapes: 85% Cabernet Sauvignon & 15% Cabernet Franc, limestone/marl/clay soils, hand-harvested, wild yeast fermentation, 24 months' ageing in mostly French oak barrels (20% new)

One of the all time great wines of Italy (and the world), "Sassicaia" was first released commercially in 1968 by the Marchese Mario Incisa della Rocchetta. It's the only Italian estate to have its own DOC designation of Bolgheri Sassicaia. The wine's name, in English, means "Stony Field". Sold originally as a lowly Vino de Tavola (due to its grape blend), the wine became the first of the "Super Tuscan" estates to receive worldwide critical acclaim.

Critics' Tasting Notes:

"The bouquet is up front and very expressive from the get-go. It offers a generous display of crunchy, dark cherry that hints at the extra concentration and fruit weight obtained in the 2019 growing season. This vintage will be remembered for the crisp richness of the fruit and its important textural imprint. It also shows fine elegance, bordering on the ethereal, with berry aromas, tarry earth and brushes of balsam herb or grilled rosemary. Sassicaia always shows an almost-glossy finely knit quality to the polished mouthfeel, and I find it again here next to fresh acidity and firm tannins. Mouthfeel in 2019 is the wine's strongest suit. The 2019 is one of the prettiest and most balanced editions of Sassicaia we've seen this past decade, along with the back-to-back duo of 2016 and 2015. The 2019 marries the precision of the 2016 with the rich fruit weight of the 2015." Drink 2025-2055

98/100 points, Monica Larner, Wine Advocate, January 2022

"It’s very strong and it’s impossible to scratch the serious, austere sensory profile of Sassicaia 2019. Deep and comes alive silently in the glass over time, animating the scene with perfumes which strongly recall Mediterranean herbs. The primary picture is rich in sour cherries, black prunes, black tea leaves, wet grass, cloves, nutmeg and marjoram. Memories of decisive oriental spices hover around the borders of the calamatic sensory image which are difficult to cross. Full bodied, sensual and noble in the sip showing grace and equilibrium, wisdom and knowledge which comes from a big, well projected vision that started with the workers in the vineyard. The silky tannins are perfectly polymerized and the finale of commendable canonic beauty brings back memories of a ‘Sanmartiniana’ perfection with it’s passion and impetus. A masterpiece of Italian oenology which could live forever. Better from 2026."

99/100 points, Raffaele Vecchione - WinesCritic.com, November 2022

The 2019 vintage is a stunner, one of the great vintages in the modern history of Bolgheri Sassicaia, and what stands out most is the richness and elegant concentration of the mouthfeel. Forthcoming now (although the wine must be given ample time to open), it promises to withstand the test of time. The 2019 Bolgheri Sassicaia is a wine to collect and keep.