Grace under pressure: how Sassicaia 2022 retained its poise
The team at Tenuta San Guido rode out the sweltering summer temperatures and drought conditions of 2022 to produce an eye-catchingly elegant and pure Sassicaia – a wine that will take time to develop, but that also clearly has a long life ahead of it. Richard Woodard reports. The post Grace under pressure: how Sassicaia 2022 retained its poise appeared first on The Drinks Business.
The team at Tenuta San Guido rode out the sweltering summer temperatures and drought conditions of 2022 to produce an eye-catchingly elegant and pure Sassicaia – a wine that will take time to develop, but that also clearly has a long life ahead of it. Richard Woodard reports.
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Almost 80 years after Sassicaia was first made – and more than half a century after the wine’s inaugural commercial release in 1971 – there’s an air of permanence about this pioneer of the Super Tuscan tradition. Each vintage, overseen by the Incisa della Rocchetta family and, since 2009, made by general manager Carlo Paoli and his team, mines the same seam of dependable elegance, balance and understated power.
So unchanging is the Tenuta San Guido ethos that it can be challenging for journalists to unearth ‘new news’ to coincide with the latest vintage release, in this case 2022. Dig a little deeper, however, and a story begins to take shape.
In 2022, that story is the counter-intuitive disconnect between what we remember about that sweltering drought of a summer and what we have in our glasses: a pin-sharp, fresh, elegant and pure Sassicaia that makes no bones about its all too evident youth.
“Maybe the vintage is not quite as ready as some Sassicaia releases might be when released,” admits Priscilla Incisa della Rocchetta, Tenuta San Guido’s head of external relations, and daughter of San Guido president Marquis Nicolò Incisa della Rocchetta. “I think 2022 really needs a little bit longer to age in the medium to long term.” This was very apparent during a tasting at the wine’s global launch in London on 5 February, despite the fact that it was opened and decanted some two hours beforehand.
If the audience at the tasting was taken aback by the precision and balance of Sassicaia 2022, so too was its UK importer, Armit Wines. “We represent a lot of Italian wines and, for me, the perception of 2022 is very hot – very masculine, alcohol- and tannin-driven wines,” says Armit MD Brett Fleming. “The extraordinary thing [with Sassicaia 2022] is how fresh it is – the freshness and the purity. Carlo [Paoli] says that ’22 is not about intensity and alcohol, it’s about freshness and elegance.”
This is apparent in the wine’s relatively restrained alcohol level of 13.5% ABV. Even in the context of gradually rising strengths – Sassicaia 1995 was 12.5%, but today it’s not unusual for vintages to touch 14% – this is a pillar of the Tenuta San Guido philosophy. “We try always to be at 13%, 13.5%, sometimes 14%,” says Incisa della Rocchetta. “One of the characteristics of Sassicaia is to try to keep the alcohol contained – as contained as possible. We often harvest quite early compared to other people in the area.”
That philosophy was tested in 2022, with temperatures still soaring as the first Sassicaia Cabernet Sauvignon was picked at the beginning of September. “We had just finished two new warehouses near the production centre at Tenuta San Guido,” recalls Incisa della Rocchetta. “They were empty, but they had the refrigeration system going. So we could use them to store the grapes – we pushed the sorting table inside the warehouse. The people were working the grapes in a nice temperature.”
Production tweaks sought to emphasise freshness over weight: a slightly shorter maceration period of about 13 days, or a little longer for the older vineyards; 23 months in wood, where in other years it might be 24 or 25 months; and, because of the hydric stress at the end of the growing season, a little less Cabernet Franc in the blend (12% rather than the more typical 15%).
The character of Sassicaia 2022 reflects a broader truth about that vintage, in that winemakers across Europe were astonished by a vivacity and purity that appeared to defy the gravity of such a scorching growing season. But the elevation and maritime influence of Tenuta San Guido’s location in Bolgheri will no doubt have played its part as well.
Strange to think that, when Priscilla’s grandfather, Mario Incisa della Rocchetta, planted the first Sassicaia vineyard at Castiglioncello during the early 1940s, the one-hectare hillside plot he chose was southeast-facing – so concerned was he that the vines might not cope with the cool maritime winds blowing in off the Tyrrhenian Sea to the west.
Fast-forward to 2025, and the estate is planting north-facing vineyards for Sassicaia, with more than half an eye on adapting to the impact of climate change. Even so, Incisa della Rocchetta says: “In Bolgheri it’s not so extreme, because we are so close to the sea. And we are protected to the northeast from the very cold winds in the winter. So it’s manageable.”
Bolgheri’s strategic location also had its advantages during 2023 – a growing season that offered a not altogether pleasing contrast to the year before. We’ll have to wait 12 months to discover what Sassicaia has to offer from that year, but Tenuta San Guido has just released the 2023 vintage of Le Difese, the ‘early-drinking’ Sangiovese-Cabernet blend that has been part of the portfolio since 2002.
In 2023, a cold and rainy spring, followed by warming temperatures, heightened the risk of mildew. “Luckily we have three very experienced agronomists, and they managed to protect the vineyards by having a large number of people – about 120 – working in the vineyard in springtime in order to clean and keep the vineyards aerated,” explains Incisa della Rocchetta.
Bolgheri’s sea breezes helped to mitigate against the mildew threat, but vineyards in central Tuscany – Le Difese’s Sangiovese is sourced from Chianti and Chianti Rufina – were more badly affected; as a result, there’s a little less Sangiovese (65%) in Le Difese’s 2023 blend.
“Le Difese 2022 is more about aromas and freshness, whereas 2023 has a much more important structure, because the proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon is a bit higher than normal,” adds Incisa della Rocchetta. That structure is enhanced by the Cabernet having longer hang time, with picking finishing during the first week of October.
If Le Difese 2023 offers a partial teaser of what Sassicaia 2023 might be, it is also a wine that, while capable of ageing for several years, is geared for more immediate consumption. “Le Difese is the first wine of the three labels of Tenuta San Guido [alongside Sassicaia and Guidalberto], so really the welcome wine to the family,” says Incisa della Rocchetta. “A wine to be enjoyed young, that doesn’t need to age so long, but very versatile with food and quite popular by the glass.”
In that sense, Le Difese 2023 could be seen to be the polar opposite of Sassicaia 2022, the latter being a wine that has barely embarked on its decades-long voyage of maturation and evolution. Incisa della Rocchetta says: “What is sure is that Sassicaia 2022 will need a lot of time – but it will also have a long life.”
The wines of Tenuta San Guido, including Sassicaia 2022 and Le Difese 2023, are represented in the UK by Armit Wines. Pricing for both wines will be available shortly. Tenuta San Guido’s Guidalberto 2023 vintage is due for release in March 2025.
Almost 80 years after Sassicaia was first made – and more than half a century after the wine’s inaugural commercial release in 1971 – there’s an air of permanence about this pioneer of the Super Tuscan tradition. Each vintage, overseen by the Incisa della Rocchetta family and, since 2009, made by general manager Carlo Paoli and his team, mines the same seam of dependable elegance, balance and understated power.
So unchanging is the Tenuta San Guido ethos that it can be challenging for journalists to unearth ‘new news’ to coincide with the latest vintage release, in this case 2022. Dig a little deeper, however, and a story begins to take shape.
In 2022, that story is the counter-intuitive disconnect between what we remember about that sweltering drought of a summer and what we have in our glasses: a pin-sharp, fresh, elegant and pure Sassicaia that makes no bones about its all too evident youth.
“Maybe the vintage is not quite as ready as some Sassicaia releases might be when released,” admits Priscilla Incisa della Rocchetta, Tenuta San Guido’s head of external relations, and daughter of San Guido president Marquis Nicolò Incisa della Rocchetta. “I think 2022 really needs a little bit longer to age in the medium to long term.” This was very apparent during a tasting at the wine’s global launch in London on 5 February, despite the fact that it was opened and decanted some two hours beforehand.
If the audience at the tasting was taken aback by the precision and balance of Sassicaia 2022, so too was its UK importer, Armit Wines. “We represent a lot of Italian wines and, for me, the perception of 2022 is very hot – very masculine, alcohol- and tannin-driven wines,” says Armit MD Brett Fleming. “The extraordinary thing [with Sassicaia 2022] is how fresh it is – the freshness and the purity. Carlo [Paoli] says that ’22 is not about intensity and alcohol, it’s about freshness and elegance.”
This is apparent in the wine’s relatively restrained alcohol level of 13.5% ABV. Even in the context of gradually rising strengths – Sassicaia 1995 was 12.5%, but today it’s not unusual for vintages to touch 14% – this is a pillar of the Tenuta San Guido philosophy. “We try always to be at 13%, 13.5%, sometimes 14%,” says Incisa della Rocchetta. “One of the characteristics of Sassicaia is to try to keep the alcohol contained – as contained as possible. We often harvest quite early compared to other people in the area.”
That philosophy was tested in 2022, with temperatures still soaring as the first Sassicaia Cabernet Sauvignon was picked at the beginning of September. “We had just finished two new warehouses near the production centre at Tenuta San Guido,” recalls Incisa della Rocchetta. “They were empty, but they had the refrigeration system going. So we could use them to store the grapes – we pushed the sorting table inside the warehouse. The people were working the grapes in a nice temperature.”
Production tweaks sought to emphasise freshness over weight: a slightly shorter maceration period of about 13 days, or a little longer for the older vineyards; 23 months in wood, where in other years it might be 24 or 25 months; and, because of the hydric stress at the end of the growing season, a little less Cabernet Franc in the blend (12% rather than the more typical 15%).
The character of Sassicaia 2022 reflects a broader truth about that vintage, in that winemakers across Europe were astonished by a vivacity and purity that appeared to defy the gravity of such a scorching growing season. But the elevation and maritime influence of Tenuta San Guido’s location in Bolgheri will no doubt have played its part as well.
Strange to think that, when Priscilla’s grandfather, Mario Incisa della Rocchetta, planted the first Sassicaia vineyard at Castiglioncello during the early 1940s, the one-hectare hillside plot he chose was southeast-facing – so concerned was he that the vines might not cope with the cool maritime winds blowing in off the Tyrrhenian Sea to the west.
Fast-forward to 2025, and the estate is planting north-facing vineyards for Sassicaia, with more than half an eye on adapting to the impact of climate change. Even so, Incisa della Rocchetta says: “In Bolgheri it’s not so extreme, because we are so close to the sea. And we are protected to the northeast from the very cold winds in the winter. So it’s manageable.”
Bolgheri’s strategic location also had its advantages during 2023 – a growing season that offered a not altogether pleasing contrast to the year before. We’ll have to wait 12 months to discover what Sassicaia has to offer from that year, but Tenuta San Guido has just released the 2023 vintage of Le Difese, the ‘early-drinking’ Sangiovese-Cabernet blend that has been part of the portfolio since 2002.
In 2023, a cold and rainy spring, followed by warming temperatures, heightened the risk of mildew. “Luckily we have three very experienced agronomists, and they managed to protect the vineyards by having a large number of people – about 120 – working in the vineyard in springtime in order to clean and keep the vineyards aerated,” explains Incisa della Rocchetta.
Bolgheri’s sea breezes helped to mitigate against the mildew threat, but vineyards in central Tuscany – Le Difese’s Sangiovese is sourced from Chianti and Chianti Rufina – were more badly affected; as a result, there’s a little less Sangiovese (65%) in Le Difese’s 2023 blend.
“Le Difese 2022 is more about aromas and freshness, whereas 2023 has a much more important structure, because the proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon is a bit higher than normal,” adds Incisa della Rocchetta. That structure is enhanced by the Cabernet having longer hang time, with picking finishing during the first week of October.
If Le Difese 2023 offers a partial teaser of what Sassicaia 2023 might be, it is also a wine that, while capable of ageing for several years, is geared for more immediate consumption. “Le Difese is the first wine of the three labels of Tenuta San Guido [alongside Sassicaia and Guidalberto], so really the welcome wine to the family,” says Incisa della Rocchetta. “A wine to be enjoyed young, that doesn’t need to age so long, but very versatile with food and quite popular by the glass.”
In that sense, Le Difese 2023 could be seen to be the polar opposite of Sassicaia 2022, the latter being a wine that has barely embarked on its decades-long voyage of maturation and evolution. Incisa della Rocchetta says: “What is sure is that Sassicaia 2022 will need a lot of time – but it will also have a long life.”
The wines of Tenuta San Guido, including Sassicaia 2022 and Le Difese 2023, are represented in the UK by Armit Wines. Pricing for both wines will be available shortly. Tenuta San Guido’s Guidalberto 2023 vintage is due for release in March 2025. 
