Winemaker Notes
Blend: 50% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc, 10% Petit Verdot
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Attractive aromas of sweet tobacco, black olives and sage, as well as dark fruit. Medium-to full-bodied with medium, round tannins that are chewy and tense. Needs some time to soften. Merlot, cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc. Drink after 2023.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
An outstanding wine region made famous by Marchese Mario Incisa della Rocchetta, who planted Cabernet Sauvignon vines for his own consumption in 1940s on his San Guido estate, and called the resulting wine, Sassicaia. Today the region’s Tuscan reds are based on Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, which can be made as single varietal wines or blends. The local Sangiovese can make up no more than 50% of the blends. Today Sassicaia has its own DOC designation within the Bogheri DOC appellation.