1985 Sassicaia, Tenuta San Guido, Bolgheri, Tuscany, Bottle (750ml) [Slightly Nicked Label]

RP100 "Oddly enough, the 1985 Sassicaia was the wine least commented during the conversations that followed this retrospective. Our panel consisted of some two dozen professional wine tasters from around the world, and virtually not a word was uttered with regards to this wine. That's how truly outstanding it is. The soaring beauty of this landmark Sassicaia literally transcends the rather mundane realm of wine critique with its string of adjectives and wearisome descriptors. It hardly deserves to be treated like any of the other gorgeous wines we tasted on this glorious day. In truth, the 1985 Sassicaia does reveal a new perspective onto its perfection each time you have the fortune to taste it. I noticed a layer of bright almond-like sweetness that I don't recall tasting before. The wine seems to be getting younger, not older. Even its appearance is remarkable. Of the various samples presented from the 1980s, this wine exhibited the brightest garnet color and the most youthful personality. It shows stunning volume. The integration is seamless and the wine's many complicated pieces fit together with utmost precision like a jigsaw puzzle that renders a most beautiful Italian masterpiece when admired at completion." ML for TWA Dec 2022

JA100 " Wow, this is practically bursting out of the glass and out of the line-up. Black olive tapenade, salty anchovy tang, rosemary and sage, against the black cherry and redcurrant fruit. Incredible testament to the life possible in Sassicaia. Get hold of this wine if you possibly can. The still-present tannins are not trying to exert an influence, they are simply confident of keeping the fruit gently cradled and in line. A peculiar vintage because of a very cold winter, where 80% of the olive trees in Tuscany were destroyed. It no doubt contributed to the low yields, as did the long, sunny and dry growing season. This is an iconic wine that is proving its worth and then some. 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc." JA for DR Nov 2016

WS99 "Unreal for its sheer hedonistic quality. Oozes rich and ripe fruit and sweet wood character, but doesn't taste overripe. Loaded with cassis and mineral flavors backed by tar and spice. Much thicker and darker in color than the '88, which is more elegant. In its history the winery has made no other Sassicaia with such massive tannins, yet the texture of the wine is supple. Made from very small yields. Tempting now.--Sassicaia vertical." JS for WS Jul 1996

AG100 "A dear friend had saved a bottle of the 1985 Sassicaia to share, and that was the impetus for getting together. Although I have had the 1985 Sassicaia a number of times I have never been totally convinced. This bottle did it for me. It was as perfect as anything can be in this world. Still fresh, perfumed and full of life, the wine showed incredible detail and pedigree in a dazzling expression of class. To say it was profound would be an understatement. Life changing is more like it. Those who have bestowed the 1985 with the highest of praise must have surely tasted bottles like this one." AG for VM Feb 2012

Robert Parker writes, "I had this wine in a blind tasting - I have had it frequently, and have never failed to give it a perfect rating. At the same time, I have often mis-identified it in blind tastings as the 1986 Mouton-Rothschild. In this tasting, the wine was phenomenal. The color remains an opaque purple. The bouquet is beginning to develop secondary aromas of cedar and truffles to go along with its intense cassis, black-raspberry, blackberry, tarry, toasty personality. Exceptionally dense, concentrated, and full-bodied, this wine possesses layers of concentrated fruit that are beautifully balanced by the wine's sweet tannin and well-integrated acidity. The finish lasts for nearly a minute. A monumental Cabernet Sauvignon, it is one of the greatest wines made this century. Tasting after tasting continues to confirm this wine's surreal level of quality. Despite being 11 years old, it remains youthful. What a wine!" 100 Pts Published: Dec 10, 1992