Sassicaia Cabernet Sauvignon 1994, Tenuta San Guido

Tenuta San Guido

Sassicaia is a wine of international renown. It is recognized to be the founding father of the "Super Tuscan" movement and to have put the region of Bolgheri on the wine world map. However, the story of the San Guido estate, and of its most famous wine creation, began well before the Decanter triumph. Tenuta San Guido is one of the great estates of Italy. Smaller today than once it was, it extends over 5,000 acres, of which about 150 are planted with vines. Unusually in the wine world, where iconic stars are most commonly the product of singular minds and a focus only on making wine, the Tenuta San Guido estate has a number of activities completely unrelated to wine. The link between them and wine making is the remarkable Nicolò Incisa Della Rocchetta, the current owner of the estate. Modest to a fault, it is his quiet determination, building on his father?s pioneering decision to plant Cabernet Sauvignon where all around said it would fail, that has seen Sassicaia achieve the fame and recognition it deserves.

This historic estate came to Nicolò through his mother, Clarice Della Gheradesca, whose family has owned land here since 1800. A magnificent avenue of Cypress trees, which lines the road for three miles from San Guido itself up the hill to the village of Bolgheri, was planted by Guidalberto Della Gheradesca at the beginning of the 1800s. It is now a famous landmark, protected by law as part of the landscape.

Traditionally, the family only made wine for the consumption of relations, friends and local people but Nicolò?s father Mario, who came from Piedmont, was a great wine lover, particularly of the best Bordeaux wines. Mario decided to make his own wine on the estate, which until then had only been famous for the breeding of race horses and the production of tulips. The Antinoris were cousins and there may also, perhaps, have been an element of competition involved. One thing led to another and the Incisa Della Rocchetta family launched Sassicaia onto the open market with the 1968 vintage. Only six hundred cases were produced, marketed by the Antinoris. It was after completing his studies in Geneva that Nicolò himself became involved in the estate. Initially he was not permitted by his father to have anything to do with the wine because Mario feared that he would spoil things. A fascinating but domineering person, Mario must initially have been a difficult man to follow but the worldwide recognition enjoyed by Sassicaia today speaks eloquently of Nicolò's success.

The Incisa Della Rocchetta family emblem, a star, is at the centre of the Sassicaia label. It is not only the heraldic device of the family but links to the Stellone d?Italia (Star of Italy), an ancient secular symbol of Italy purported to protect the nation.

Tenuta San Guido website