2021 Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia

Other Reviews....
This is a benchmark vintage, offering special appeal thanks to its profound sharpness and precision. The Tenuta San Guido 2021 Bolgheri Sassicaia remains fixed and immobile, like a time capsule of the vintage itself. One member of the winery team with whom I tasted used the word “granitic,” referring to its frozen, statue-like posture, a description I found especially fitting for the wine’s character. Whereas the 2016 vintage shows iron-like minerality, the 2021 reveals brilliant limestone clarity followed by dark currant, dried mint and blood orange. Cabernet Franc is reduced to 12% in this blend alongside Cabernet Sauvignon. The mouthfeel is complete and profound, defined by freshness and firm texture, and even when revisited nearly an hour later, this stone statue of a wine did not budge. This is a bottle clearly built for long cellar aging. Drink 2027-2060.
100 points
Monica Larner - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The 2021 Sassicaia is one of the best young Sassicaias I can remember tasting, certainly on par with anything in recent memory. The preference here is picking on the earlier side relative to many neighboring properties, which is one of the reasons Sassicaia is always a wine of refinement more than opulence. At the same time, Sassicaia can be light. Not in 2021. All the elements came together during a long growing season to produce a rich, deep wine that marries textural intensity with classicism. Dark cherry/plum fruit, spice, new leather, menthol, licorice and spice all race across the palate. Time in the glass brings out the wine's textural intensity and sheer power. The 2021 is one of the most concentrated Sassicaias on record. That allowed for long macerations, as long as 20 days for some Cabernets. Aging was 25 months in French oak barrels (95% French, 5% a mix of Hungarian and Slavonian wood), 40% new, 40% once-used barrels and 20% in twice-used barrels. One of the recent developments here is some bâtonnage in aging, which is used to build texture. That approach worked well in 2021. In a word: magnificent. Drink 2029-2051.
98+ points
Antonio Galloni - Vinous

Very classy and typical of Sassicaia with currant, tobacco, chocolate, sage and lavender on the nose and palate. Medium- to full-bodied with very integrated and refined tannins that are caressing and pretty with a lovely length and beauty. Such finesse and structure at the same time. Best in 2028 and beyond but already joy to taste.
98 points
James Suckling

The 2021 Sassicaia is remarkable for being simultaneously complex yet transparent. In the glass, it displays a bright jeweled ruby red hue. On my second tasting of this wine, the nose was much more expressive than in my initial tasting the previous day, offering pure aromas of raspberry, pretty lifted spices and lavender, dusty earth, and fresh Mediterranean herbs, and as it opens, it develops notes of rhubarb, incense, and sandalwood. The palate is pure and expressive, with well-defined, ripe tannins, seamless acidity, and refreshing saltiness, but its shining pure fruit is what stands out and will shine for decades to come.
99 points
Audrey Frick - jebdunnuck.com

2021 is one of Sassicaia's legendary vintages, and it's just gorgeous. The grapes are hand harvested, before eight to 10 separate vinifications with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel, followed by ageing in barriques, which are mostly used. The final blend is micro-oxygenated in stainless steel tanks before bottling. The result? A tapestry of softly unveiling flavours: blackberry, bay leaf, cedar and fruity blueberry dance together, underpinned by graphite minerality. It exudes aristocratic elegance through perfectly ripened tannins and vibrant acidity, with notes of eucalyptus, plums, pomegranate and undergrowth extending out. Its extraordinary finish oscillates, wave-like, with tangy fruits carrying through. The 2021 comprises 85% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Cabernet Franc from vineyards at 100m-300m on diverse soils. Drink 2028-2061.
99 points
Isobel Salamon - Decanter