The 2018 Sassicaia is fabulous. Bright and beautifully poised, the 2018 opens with brilliant aromatics that make a strong first impression. Delicate and light on its feet, the 2018 is a regal wine that is going to need a number of years to come into its own. Sassicaia is the most finessed of Bolgheri’s top wines. That is very much the case in 2018 as well. I loved it.

Beautiful, serene aromas of sweet berries and wild flowers with light lavender and fresh sage. Really aromatic. A firm, silky red with medium to full body and ultra fine tannins that are polished and beautiful. Lots of blue fruit and blackberries follow through to a beautiful finish. Really tight and polished. Bright acidity. Will be lovely to drink in a few years. The 2017 and 2016 were about power, but the 2018 is about finesse and subtlety. Try after 2024.

All about radiance and finesse, this iconic Tuscan red has beguiling aromas of cedar, wild red berry, menthol and pipe tobacco that mingle with fragrant blue flowers. Made with 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Cabernet Franc, the focused, elegantly structured palate is vibrant and savory, delivering cassis, orange zest, licorice and a hint of coffee framed in taut, polished tannins. Bright acidity keeps it energized and balanced. Drink through 2033. Kerin O'Keefe

This is a classic vintage of an Italian icon now celebrating its 50th vintage. The Tenuta San Guido 2018 Bolgheri Sassicaia lays out a familiar blueprint that borrows from the proven track record of this landmark estate that extends into the hills just beyond the Tyrrhenian shores of Tuscany. This vintage is crystalline and pure in its delivery, and if you are familiar with previous editions, it is impossible to mistake this wine for anything but Sassicaia.

The growing season started off cool and wet but turned to warm and dry conditions comfortably before the harvest. Cabernet Sauvignon with Cabernet Franc in a supporting role deliver a graceful mid-weight texture that holds back style-wise in terms of phenolic density. The wine's careful balance is achieved thanks to the nuanced character of the fruit, the present acidity, the well-managed structure and the contained alcohol. The palate is lifted and bright, the finish is polished and long, and the wine skips over any heaviness on the mid-palate. The bouquet is especially intriguing with a very lively plummy fruit element that is enhanced by baker's chocolate, pepper spice, iron ore, caramel and pie crust. There is also a green character that adds positively to the bouquet with aniseed, tea leaf, soya, menthol rub and black olive. The fruit maturity is spot-on with no elements that feel over or underripe. Overall, the 2018 Sassicaia weighs in with a svelte frame and long persistence. Moreover, it is distinguished by the archetypal elegance and pedigree of the classic vintages of the past. This new release gives you much pleasure to await. ML

This is a classic vintage of an Italian icon now celebrating its 50th vintage. The Tenuta San Guido 2018 Bolgheri Sassicaia lays out a familiar blueprint that borrows from the proven track record of this landmark estate that extends into the hills just beyond the Tyrrhenian shores of Tuscany. This vintage is crystalline and pure in its delivery, and if you are familiar with previous editions, it is impossible to mistake this wine for anything but Sassicaia. The growing season started off cool and wet but turned to warm and dry conditions comfortably before the harvest. Cabernet Sauvignon with Cabernet Franc in a supporting role deliver a graceful mid-weight texture that holds back style-wise in terms of phenolic density. The wine's careful balance is achieved thanks to the nuanced character of the fruit, the present acidity, the well-managed structure and the contained alcohol. The palate is lifted and bright, the finish is polished and long, and the wine skips over any heaviness on the mid-palate. The bouquet is especially intriguing with a very lively plummy fruit element that is enhanced by baker's chocolate, pepper spice, iron ore, caramel and pie crust. There is also a green character that adds positively to the bouquet with aniseed, tea leaf, soya, menthol rub and black olive. The fruit maturity is spot-on with no elements that feel over or underripe. Overall, the 2018 Sassicaia weighs in with a svelte frame and long persistence. Moreover, it is distinguished by the archetypal elegance and pedigree of the classic vintages of the past. This new release gives you much pleasure to await.

The 2018 vintage was fresher than usual in Bolgheri, mainly due to a rainy spring which was challenging, but also following a cooler end to August. The higher vineyards on which Sassicaia could rely produced grapes with an outstanding quality of phenolics, benefitting from a useful fruit-set and mild September. The severe selection of the grapes - with a level of production similar to that of the dry 2017 - did the rest. Restrained red and black currant aromas are allied to aromatic herbs such as eucalyptus leaf and rosemary, completed by coffee bean, earthy tones and cedar. This is a wine focussed on fresh fruit, with a savoury citrus finish proving its depth. The tight-knit structure is firm with chalky yet ripe tannins and extremely fresh, natural and long acidity. More elegant than powerful, this 2018 is perfectly integrated with the Sassicaia style, full of tension. Not immediately ready to drink but promising stunning finesse.
Tasted by Aldo Fiordelli (at Milan, 23 Jan 2021)
Part of First taste: Sassicaia 2018

Notes of woodsmoke, blackcurrants and a hint of mint. Tobacco and cigar box add complexity. Dark, dense and concentrated. Nominated by Aldo Fiordelli.

1968 first commercial vintage, so this vintage marks the half-century. Around 60% of the vineyards in Bolgheri Sassicaia DOC are used for Sassicaia. 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc. TA 5.98, pH 3.45, RS 0.17 g/l . Mid ruby. Initially quite scented, then strangely closed a little in the glass. Subtle tones of cedar, vanilla and dried tobacco, with precision of fresh blackcurrant and a hint of black cherry. There’s an underlying graphite and stone/mineral complexity too. Juicy palate – certainly good acidity here – and a comparatively moderate tannic load, both of which work in harmony to structure the wine. The tannins are fine grained, without the somewhat pinched texture I saw in the 2017 vintage, though will nevertheless benefit from a little cellaring to resolve to a silky finesse. At about three-quarter distance there’s just a hint of wateriness, but then the delicate flavour does persist to a very good-length finish. This is certainly Sassicaia in the elegant and subtle mould v 2017’s more powerful iteration. It would be interesting to evaluate these two side by side in a few years. (TJ)

Lustrous mid ruby. Subtly perfumed but not sweet and still a little subdued. There are some hints of tobacco leaf, but these really add rather than announcing fast development. A shimmer of oak but more like eucalyptus and becoming more pronounced and lifted with aeration. Lots of juice, suave and elegant but not without concentration. The palate is a little less complex than the nose, but that is complaining at a high level. Jewel-like red fruit and coating tannins on the finish. Ready now but will go on for quite a while. (WS)