Description:
Tenuta San Guido, better known by the name of its flagship wine: Sassicaia, has written the history of wine in Maremma and of the “Bordeaux-style” blend in Tuscany.
Mario Incisa della Rocchetta was born at the end of the 19th century from a family of Piedmontese origins that counts viticulture experts, He studied agriculture in Pisa, while keeping tasting and falling in love with French wines. After his studies, he moved to the estate of his wife, Clarice della Gherardesca, descendant of one of the noblest Tuscan families. At her Tenuta San Guido in Maremma, he began to study the land, discovering an affinity with the soil rich in pebbles of the Graves area, in Bordeaux. From that moment, he decided to dedicate part of his business to viticulture and winemaking, working to produce a wine that could rival the great French wines of the time, while still respecting his origins.
At the time the Maremma was not a territory considered for its wine production and Mario Incisa himself, while creating his “Bordeaux” wine, the first of this type in the area, uses it exclusively for private consumption, within the held, focusing on other activities of great importance for the enhancement of the territory such as the breeding of local horses, the creation of a private oasis and the presidency of the newly created WWF, demonstrating first of all a passion for this land, for its gifts and for their protection.
Finally, in 1968, Sassicaia was offered to the market, receiving an extremely positive response, so much so that it was assimilated to a Bordeaux Premier Cru. In the following years, the Estate undertook further improvement for its wines but worked as well to give them a place within the Italian appellation, with the birth of the IGT and then of the DOC Bolgheri.
In addition to Sassicaia, the company produces two other labels. Guidalberto was born in 2000 as a tribute to the maternal predecessor Guidalberto della Gherardesca, creator of the famous Viale dei Cipressi and pioneer of agriculture. It is a wine created to be more easily approachable, thanks to the higher percentage of Merlot, even drunk in younger years. The soils are varied, with areas rich in limestone, stones and partially clay, with South, South-West exposure.
Tasting Notes and Pairing:
Austere and slightly introverted wine. Small acidic red fruits to the nose, vital and linear in the mouth with notes of licorice with a good structure.
Suggested serving temperature:
16-18 °C
Suggestion to open it about 1 to 2 hours before serving it. And let it breath in the glass as well.
in the vineyard:
Production method and aging:
Fermentation in stainless-steel, then aged in French and American third passage oak barriques for 15 months.