Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia 2022

98 Points International Wine Report: "The 2022 Sassicaia is simply brilliant in this vintage, showing a remarkable level of poise and freshness. It opens with a captivating bouquet of ripe blackberries, plum, florals and subtle herbs, underscored by a touch of spice, tobacco and minerals. On the palate, it is medium to full-bodied and well-structured, with velvety tannins and a lively acidity that provides perfect balance. Rich flavors of red/dark fruits, tobacco and spices unfold beautifully, leading to a long, persistent finish that is both refined and elegant. A stunning example of Sassicaia's pedigree and resilience to thrive year after year. Drink 2028-2048 (Feb 2025)"

98 points James Suckling: "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. (Feb 2025)"

98 points Raffaele Vecchione (WinesCritic.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 refined tannins enliven the palate with great grace and harmony, leaving room for a slightly more voluminous finish at this stage. The palate is satisfying from the start, extending from a relaxed mid-palate to a noble finish. Yet another different version of Sassicaia, joining the ranks of the splendid examples of recent years. (Feb 2025)"

97+ points Monica Larner (Wine Advocate): "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. Drink 2028-2050 (Feb 2025)"

97+ points Ian D'Agata Wine Review: "Deep, saturated but bright purple-ruby colour. The nose is at once powerful yet elegant, offering precise, richly fruity aromas of blackberry, red cherry jelly, lavender, balsamic oils, sage, cedar, oriental spices, and minerals. Rich and ripe in the mouth, but remarkably fresh and elegant, the 2022 Sassicaia boasts a tapered, refined mouthfeel and exceptional length to its delicately spicy dark berry and cherry flavours. The youthfully chewy but overall polished and gentle tannins are a testament to the physiological ripeness achieved by the grapes at Tenuta San Guido. Neither brooding nor tightly coiled (don’t believe everything you read), this is an immediately generous Sassicaia (in keeping with the warm-weather characteristics of the year), that thanks to a part of Sassicaia’s grapes being sourced from some of the highest hillsides in all of Bolgheri, maintains a remarkable level of freshness and clarity from start to very long finish. Clearly, harvesting a little earlier than usual and employing slightly shorter skin contact and less time in oak also went a long way to achieving what is undoubtedly a great Sassicaia. One that also promises to have along and graceful evolution in the bottle, even though it will always be more approachable and readier to drink than many other vintages of this noble red wine. A blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon and 12% Cabernet Franc, the 2022 Sassicaia was aged for twenty-three months in French barriques (40% new). Well done. Drinking window: 2029-2048. (Mar 2025)"

97+ points Audrey Frick (JebDunnuck.com): "The 2022 Sassicaia is a deeper, youthful magenta/red color with a slightly deeper aromatic profile of rosemary, gravelly earth, sage, mossy earth, and fresh black cherries. The palate has slightly broader shoulders but remains elegant. It has more plushness on the mid-palate, while its acidity shines through with the finish. It will need several years to shed its baby fat and show its full potential. Drink 2028-2058. (Mar 2025)"

97 points James Button (Decanter): "The wine is tightly coiled and concentrated. It feels almost cinched at the waist, with a fascinating tension between the weight of raspberry, blackberry and strawberry coulis fruit and the wine's verticality, as if it's trying to burst out. Lovely mid-palate sapidity is allied to fresh acidity and fine but dense tannins, making for a dark horse of a Sassicaia that isn't giving much away today but will greatly reward those who can cellar it for 12 years and more. ‘What is sure is that 2022 will need a lot of time, but will also have a long life,’ said Priscilla Incisa della Rocchetta. A hot vintage, 2022 caused the team to work in the newly completed refrigerated warehouses in San Guido, even moving the sorting table inside. Shorter macerations and 23 rather than the more typical 24 or 25 months of ageing in wood helped to maximise the freshness. Drinking window 2027-2052 (Feb 2025)""

97 points Kerin O'Keefe: "Opening with aromas of menthol, dark spice, blue flower and dark-skinned berry, the 2022 Sassicaia is impressive and defied my expectations. Hailing from what was a notoriously hot, dry year, the estate's location, including its hillside vineyards, vicinity to the woods plus much-needed rain in August preserved freshness and aromas as did harvesting somewhat earlier than usual, shorter skin maceration and slightly less time in oak. Showing elegant restraint, it's balanced and tense, delivering flavors of ripe blackberry, wild cherry, licorice and mint. It's still quite tight and youthfully austere, with a backbone of firm, refined tannins and fresh acidity. Give it time to fully unwind. Drink 2030–2042. (Feb 2025)"

96 points Jane Anson (Inside Bordeaux): "The tannins are gentle and integrated even now, while still in barrel, and its provides a striking contrast wtih many 2022s from this corner of Tuscany, where concentration is the byword. Sassicaia is able to retain acidity even in the hottest summers, and the balsamic and butterscotch notes are beautifully balanced by rosebuds, lavender, red cherries, rosemary, fennel, charred sandalwood and tomato leaf. The frame is in place, and the density offset by a soft textural caress. Sample taken from three barrels, final wine to be shipped in a few months, after a dry vintage helped by a few rains here just before harvest. 40% new oak for ageing, Carlo Paoli director. Drink 2030-2050 (Sep 2024)"

95 points/'Collectable' Wine Spectator: "A bit shy aromatically, this concentrated red exhibits flavors of black currant, black cherry, blackberry, tobacco and sweet spices that show a hint of eucalyptus, with assertive tannins that take hold as this evolves through the finish. Although closed and compact at this stage, this is balanced, fresh and long overall. Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2028 through 2045. (Sep 2025)"