Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia Doc 2013

Soil com20 years old and 6.200 vine stocks/ha

for vineyards > 20 years old.

Climate: Definitely a good vintage. The mild and early winter was followed at the end of January by

some cold rainy days. In essence spring began late. Some frosts in April helped to control

the budding and created the natural conditions for lower production. In May the

temperatures rose gradually alternating with mild but rainy days. By early June the summer

had effectively began with high temperatures, though below the seasonal average,

accompanied by well timed sporadic precipitations. This offered cooling and water supply

to the vineyards. Optimal weather and summer climate conditions continued until the

harvest. A favourable temperature range between day and night helped the aromatic

extraction of Cabernet.

Harvest: As always the grapes were hand-picked and the harvest began in the first days of September

with the Cabernet Franc that first reached phenolic maturity. Likewise the Cabernet

Sauvignon was picked from early September until about a month later. The last grapes to be

harvested came from the vineyards of Castiglioncello di Bolgheri situated at about 350

meters above sea level. The grapes ripened perfectly with no millerandage, which resulted

in a great harvest.

Wine making: A very gentle crushing and de-stemming of the grapes was followed by fermentation in

temperature controlled stainless steel vats (at 30° - 31° C and only using the vineyard’s

native yeast). The maceration on the skins lasted 9 to 12 days for both Cabernet Franc and

Cabernet Sauvignon with frequent pumpovers of the musts and délestages. The secondary

fermentation (Malolactic fermentation) also took place in steel vats.

Aging: After the malolactic fermentation, the wine was aged in French oak barriques for 24

months, followed by a few more months in the bottle before being released on the market.