Ratings & Tasting Notes:

98 points — James Suckling, June 2016
Drinking it in Zurich, Suckling called it clearly the best Sassicaia since 1988, a wine that keeps getting better in bottle and genuinely reminds him of the awesome 1988 — which he rates as potentially better than the legendary 1985. So many layers of dark fruit, cedar and terracotta on the nose. Intense and powerful, stony, with sweet tobacco and berry undertones plus currants and sultanas. Full-bodied with ultra-fine tannins and great depth, and not yet completely open. Decant two hours in advance.

98 points — Doctor Wine (Daniele Cernilli), May 2016
A great year for Sassicaia and for Bolgheri generally, and one of the best vintages of the nineties. Intense ruby-garnet in colour, with aromas of incredible integrity and unusual complexity: balsamic notes alongside wild berries and sweet spice, with light scents of tar and underbrush. Excellent impact on the palate, balanced and nicely taut thanks to the acidity, still elegant and whole, closing with a decidedly persistent finish.

95 points — Wine Spectator, November 2001
Lovely, subtle yet complex aromas of currants, sage and green olives leading to a full-bodied red with a solid core of fruit and well-integrated tannins. Still very reserved on the finish, but those who are patient should be rewarded. Named to the Wine Spectator Top 100 of 2001.

94 points — Decanter (Jane Anson), October 2016
Seductive and greedy, with a welcoming nose showing the wine in full stride. Anson noted these wines are sharing their secrets, highlighting the floral aspects and the character of Sassicaia in a decade that held more challenging vintages than the 2000s. Aromatics still lively, and even with tertiary notes there is no sacrifice of power at nearly twenty years old. Tertiary black truffle and black olive appear, so deft and beautiful that “we sink into their embrace.” It hovers on the edge of exoticism and excess, and every time it pulls back.

19/20 — Jancis Robinson, July 2013
Serious, savoury, dense and sturdy, yet so refreshing. Vibrant and top quality by any measure.

Cult Wines International Notes:

Sassicaia is the wine that changed Italy. Mario Incisa della Rocchetta planted Cabernet Sauvignon at Bolgheri in the mid-1940s, on stony coastal ground nobody thought fit for fine wine, wanting a claret of his own. For a quarter of a century the wine was drunk only by family and friends. The first commercial release, the 1968, appeared in 1971 under oenologist Giacomo Tachis and the counsel of his cousin Piero Antinori, and it arrived as a scandal: a Tuscan coastal Cabernet sold as humble Vino da Tavola. At a Decanter tasting in London in 1978 the 1972 beat all thirty-three other Cabernets from France and California. In 1994 the estate was granted DOC Bolgheri Sassicaia, the only appellation in Italy belonging to a single property.

1998 was a great year in Bolgheri and is widely held to be the finest Sassicaia of the decade. A mild spring gave way to a hot, dry summer, and the fruit came in fully ripe with its structure intact. The blend is the classic 85 percent Cabernet Sauvignon and 15 percent Cabernet Franc. Nearly thirty years on, expect intense ruby-garnet, and layers of dark fruit, cedar, terracotta, currant and sultana over sweet tobacco, balsamic notes, wild berry, tar and underbrush, with tertiary black truffle and black olive now emerging. Full-bodied and powerful, with ultra-fine tannins, real depth and a taut acid line carrying a decidedly persistent finish. Decant two hours before serving.

Bottle Size:

750 mL

Storage History:

Always stored on its side in a climate-controlled cellar.

Condition:

Outstanding condition.

Please note: The condition of the bottle you will receive is accurately reflected by the one shown in the images.