Tickets are now available for an unforgettable evening exploring Italy's most famous wine: Tenuta San Guido's Sassicaia, the original Super Tuscan. This event entails a vertical tasting of 16 vintages of Sassicaia and a six-course seasonal dinner, prepared by the Michelin-starred Hélène Darroze. Hosted by FINE+RARE and the estate's Sales and Marketing Director, Guido Baldeschi, at 5* The Connaught Hotel, Mayfair, in the private Maple Room, this evening will be monumental.
Sassicaia is Italy’s most illustrious wine and central to the revolution that spurred on the modern era of Italian fine wine. The influence of Sassicaia in Italy, and the world over, cannot be overstated.
In 1944, Mario Incisa della Rochetta, a man who grew up drinking claret with his grandfather, planted Cabernet Sauvignon on a stony site sitting at over 1,000 feet above sea-level on his wife's estate – Tenuta San Guido in Bolgheri – on Tuscany’s coast, two hours west of Siena. Never forgetting the Bordeaux in his life, he was inspired to take action to reproduce this style he held so dear. Bottled for friends and family initially, the resulting wine encouraged Incisa della Rochetta. His nephew, Piero Antinori – who had taken over the family business – made the wine with Giacomo Tachis. The Bordeaux influence was significant and Tachis radically switched from Italy's traditional large, old Slavonian oak casks to smaller French barriques. In 1971, Piero convinced Incisa della Rochetta to release the 1968 vintage commercially and a star was born: Sassicaia.
Being 100% Cabernet, aged in new French oak and from Bolgheri – a region that did not have a DOC – Sassicaia was labelled with the lowest official classification: vino da tavola. Rapidly it received high praise from critics and drinkers seeing it command a serious price at odds with its lowly classification. This inspired a revolution in Italian oenology and led to the rise of the Super Tuscans.
Famously, in 1978 Hugh Johnson organised a blind tasting of the world’s best Cabernets for Decanter. Pitted alongside the First Growths, it was Sassicaia that came out on top and the 1985 vintage of Sassicaia was canonized when Robert Parker – who had just risen to fame – awarded it 100 points.
Undoubtably the star of the evening; we'll taste the 100-point 1985, “a soaring beauty... this landmark Sassicaia literally transcends the rather mundane realm of wine critique” according to Parker, who goes on to say it “does reveal a new perspective onto its perfection each time you have the fortune to taste it” and whose “many complicated pieces fit together with utmost precision like a jigsaw puzzle that renders a most beautiful Italian masterpiece when admired at completion.”
Starting with the 1983, we'll venture into the present through a further 15 vintages to understand fully the evolution of the estate and see how this legendary wine fairs in 16 fascinating vintages. The 1990, "the finest wine made at this estate since the nearly perfect 1985", the "in one word: awesome" 2006, the "extroverted" 2007, the "rich and silky... powerful" 2009 and the 98 point "sweet and sour...savoury, too" 2013 are just some of what you can look forward to.
When: Wednesday 13th November 2024
Time: 6.30pm for 7pm for masterclass and dinner. Carriages at 11pm
Where: Hélène Darroze at The Connaught, The Maple Room, Carlos Place, London W1K 2AL
Evening: Tasting 16 vintages of Sassicaia from 1983 – 2016. The evening promises a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to taste these vintages side by side and explore the evolution of this iconic Super-Tuscan over a six-course seasonal menu prepared by the Michelin-starred Hélène Darroze.
Price: £2,500 per person
Wines to be served:
1983 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
1985 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
1990 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
1996 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
2001 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
2005 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
2006 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
2007 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
2008 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
2009 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
2010 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
2011 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
2012 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
2013 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido
2016 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido