2022 Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia IGT Bolgheri, Tuscany

Plenty of red currant, cedar, iron and terra cotta aromas follow through to a medium to full body with graphite, sandalwood, red currants and fresh Mediterranean herbs such as thyme and rosemary. The tannins are chewy but polished in texture. This is a Sassicaia that needs three or four years of bottle age to come together and soften. A structured wine for the cellar. Try after 2029.

98 points jamessuckling.com

 
The Tenuta San Guido 2022 Bolgheri Sassicaia reveals a beautiful fruit profile with fresh blackberry, tart cherry and Mediterranean tones of blue rosemary blooms and lavender sachet. I tasted this wine several times over the course of a few months, and it has already shown a happy evolution coming into slow focus like the faint colors that emerge from a Polaroid photograph. Indeed, the bouquet appeared more closed just a short while ago. The wine's strongest suit is its elegantly streamlined mouthfeel and its contained 13.5% alcohol content. These qualities add to the silky cleanness of the mouthfeel and the accessible freshness of this vintage. I am confident that this bottle will improve with time. It requires patience.

97+ points Monica Larner robertparker.com

 
Decidedly powerful and utterly sweet and captivating in its sensory profile, it displays a solid presence of wild myrtle, blackberries, sour cherries, pressed blueberries, juniper berries, and licorice. In the secondary note, the playful contrast of peppermint and eucalyptus with dark notes of dark chocolate and cloves clearly demonstrates San Guido's interpretation of this vintage. Full body, perfectly ripe and cured tannins enliven the sip with great grace and harmony, leaving room for a finish with a slightly more voluminous character at this stage of the sip. The sip is satisfying from the attack, moving from the relaxation of the mid-palate to the noble finish. Yet another different version of Sassicaia, joining the splendid ones of recent years.
Tasted on: 26-02-2025

98 points winescritic.com

 
Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia IGT Bolgheri is one of the world’s most revered wines, the original Super Tuscan and a benchmark for Cabernet based blends outside Bordeaux. The estate’s vineyards lie in the coastal hills of Bolgheri, on stony soils rich in alluvial gravel known locally as sassicaia meaning place of many stones. This terrain, combined with cooling sea breezes and long Mediterranean sunshine, produces fruit of remarkable purity, perfume and structure. The grapes are harvested by hand with precise selection, fermented in steel and matured in French oak barriques to refine tannins and elevate complexity. Every detail is guided by heritage and exacting craftsmanship.

The aromatics are captivating and noble. Blackcurrant, wild blackberry and dark cherry intertwine with violet, cedar and graphite. Savoury layers of tobacco leaf, crushed herbs, pencil shavings and warm earth hint at the wine’s depth and longevity. As it opens, subtle tones of cocoa, sandalwood and liquorice emerge, continually evolving and revealing more with each swirl.

The palate is impeccably balanced, powerful yet composed. Silky black fruit runs through a lattice of fine grained tannins, shaped by vibrant acidity and a mineral spine that mirrors the stony soils. Flavours of cassis, plum skin, sage and subtle spice build in graceful waves, leading to an exquisite, long finish marked by structure, freshness and quiet grandeur. Sassicaia is built for the cellar. Over ten to twenty years it blossoms into layers of cigar box, truffle, balsamic depth and savoury refinement while retaining its signature elegance.

A transcendent pairing with bistecca alla Fiorentina, roast lamb, aged Pecorino, porcini risotto or simply a quiet moment reserved for greatness. This is a wine that helped rewrite Italy’s fine wine story and continues to stand among the greatest Cabernet expressions made anywhere.