The history of Tenuta San Guido and Sassicaia began long before its creation: in the 1920s, Mario
Incisa della Rocchetta, a student in Pisa and a great lover of Bordeaux wines, began to think about
producing his own wine with typical Bordeaux grapes. The years passed and in the second half of the 20th century he moved
to Tenuta San Guido, on the coast between Livorno and Grosseto: he immediately noticed a
similarity between this part of Tuscany and Graves, the cradle of great wines south of Bordeaux, and here, in a land rich in stones (where the
name comes from), he planted the first vine shoots. It was the beginning of the legend: the first vintages of Sassicaia were intended for
family consumption, at most drunk among a few close friends, until the debut on the market. The year is 1968:
Mario Incisa della Rocchetta realizes that as wine ages it improves and over time becomes a
stainless myth and the great international critics begin to notice this that was born in Tuscany, in an
area until then without a winemaking tradition, which is inspired by Bordeaux. The rest is history, from there other
producers begin to realize the potential of that area and Bolgheri becomes a myth throughout the
wine world. Sassicaia, however, has another uniqueness: it is the only Italian wine that has its own DOC,
Bolgheri Sassicaia, owned exclusively by Tenuta San Guido. The winery is made up of 85 hectares of vineyards and,
in addition to Sassicaia, it produces 2 other reds: Guidalberto, the estate's second wine, as per the
Bordeaux tradition, and Le Difese, which combines Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese.
WINEMAKER
CONSULTANT:
GRAZIANA GRASSINI
YEAR OF FOUNDATION 1941
GRAPE VARIETIES CABERNET SAUVIGNON – CABERNET
FRANC – MERLOT - SANGIOVESE
BOTTLES PER YEAR
850,000
SOIL COMPOSITION
Strong presence of calcareous areas rich in galestro and stones and partially clayey.
VINE CULTIVATION METHOD
Spurred cordon
TYPE
Red wine – D.O.C. Bolgheri Sassicaia (D.O.C. Sassicaia)
VINIFICATION AND REFINING
Careful selection of the grapes carried out on a sorting table, to eliminate any impurities
and/or imperfections in the grapes. Very soft pressing to avoid breaking the grapes and
delicate destemming to avoid the release of improper tannins. The alcoholic fermentations
(activated only with company yeasts and appropriately selected) were concluded in the first
week of November and took place regularly with controlled temperatures not exceeding
28-29 °C. Delestage operations (not too frequent) and open-air pumping
overs facilitated excellent extraction in terms of polyphenols but also with a large
aromatic component and good freshness of the musts. The malolactic fermentations,
(always spontaneous), took place in steel and concluded in the first days of December. Already
from the first week of December 2021, after appropriate racking of the musts, the wine was
placed in oak barriques. At the end of the malolactic fermentations the wine was
placed in barriques initially using only 2nd and 3rd passage wood until the end of
February. During this period frequent bâtonnages and the addition of
noble lees were carried out. From 1 March 2022, the decanting and use of new wood was carried out, for
about 40% and a further 40% of first passage and 20% of second passage. As
woods, for the 2021 vintage, French oak (Tronçais, Allier and Jupilles
in particular) with extra-fine grain, light toasting and long seasoning was used. Sassicaia 2021
carried out a period of aging in wood of 24 months and was subsequently decanted into
steel tanks to subject it to the final phase of selection of the masses before
assembly. Light clarification and oxygenation of the wines before the final assembly
and then bottling which started in mid-January 2024. Subsequent refinement
in the bottle before marketing.
PRODUCTION AREA
Bolgheri. The production plants are located at an average altitude between 100 and 300 meters above sea level, with exposure to the West/South-West.
GRAPE VARIETY
Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc
SOIL COMPOSITION
Strong presence of calcareous areas rich in galestro and stones and partially clayey.
VINE CULTIVATION METHOD
Spurred cordon
Distributed by Meregalli Giuseppe S.p.a. - meregalli.com / info@meregalli.it
ORGANIC NOTES
Purple red with violet reflections. On the nose it offers notes of aromatic herbs and spices, combined with
memories of red fruits, undergrowth, rose and elegant notes of wood. On the palate it has a good
structure, with a hint of acidity that gives energy and vivacity and with a perfectly
integrated tannin that gives volume. The finish is long and complex.
PAIRINGS
All kinds of meat and fine game