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SusieQ · 01-21-2005, 08:40 PM,

I was given a gift of a bottle of 1998 Sassacaia and don't know whethter to enjoy it now or lay it down (or for how long). Can anyone help?

hotwine · 01-21-2005, 10:14 PM,

Welcome to the board, Susie. Not personally familiar with the wine, but one writer, Daniel Rogov, has said it can be consumed from 2005-2025 and might hold for a longer period. He gave it a score of 97. If you have excellent storage, suggest you continue to hold it; but if your storage is not optimum, opine it should probably be consumed in the next few months. See http://www.stratsplace.com/rogov/sassicaia_78_99.html

wineguruchgo · 01-22-2005, 12:22 AM,

Hi SusieQ!

Another welcome to the wineboard!

That is a really, really beautiful bottle of wine you have. Someone really likes you!

Sure, you can hold on to it for a little while. I don't have a humidity controlled environment other than air conditioning and my wines are fine.

When you have a special occasion please make sure you give that wine at least 1 hour to open up before you consume it.

Here is what Spectator said and they gave it a rating of 95!

Lovely, subtle yet complex aromas of currants, sage and green olives lead to a full-bodied red with a solid core of fruit and well-integrated tannins. Still very reserved on the finish, but those who are patient should be rewarded. Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best after 2005. 13,000 cases made. (JS)

You are going to want a big, fleshy steak with this wine. Anything light you will lose the food!

Enjoy!

SusieQ · 01-22-2005, 05:14 PM,

Thanks so much (both of you). I figured it was pretty special. Will save it for a really special meal or occasion and will serve with an excellent steak. Good thing I am from Alberta where an especially great tenderloin of beef is always at hand!!! Never mind any BSE (mad cow) jokes!!!

graywolfe · 10-31-2005, 02:24 AM,

From what I've read around, I believe the wine is from one of the most famous Super Tuscan producers around, and I believe this may have been the first major Super Tuscan producer. There's a write up about these wines and the producers in a wine spectator I have around but I misplaced it. If you drank it already, how was it?

SusieQ · 10-31-2005, 10:08 PM,

Hi Graywolf

No, Haven't popped the cork yet but plan to durin Christmas vacation when the person who gave it to us will be visiting - then we can share! Will let you know.

AlpineOeno · 10-31-2005, 10:38 PM,

I had the 98 at a tasting last month. Its still very tight. It would be to your benefit to "lose" it for at least 5 years.

Capocheny · 11-02-2005, 11:46 PM,

SusieQ,

If you do decide to pop it now... decant it and let it breathe for awhile.

I agree fully with AlpineOeno... it's still very tight and will definitely benefit from another few years of cellaring.

So many wines... so little time!

Cheers

SusieQ · 11-05-2005, 09:27 PM,

Thanks for the advice. No rush! Will keep it a few years longer (now that we have our cellar to do so). What do you mean by tight - Is there any other way to describe it for me? I know that sometimes we open a bottle and are disappointed that it isn't all that it should be but can't describe why.

AlpineOeno · 11-05-2005, 10:56 PM,

"tight" is a term often used for young wines. It is one of those terms that everyone in the wine world uses, and knows what it means, but if you ask them to describe it, you'll get a hundred different definitions. I personally use it to describe a wine that is not as expressin\ve on the nose and palate as it will be when it reaches its prime. Not to be confused with a simple drinking wine that has only one dimension to offer, but referring to one of only a few wines (about 5% of world production) that is actually ageable and will benefit from more time. THis manifests itself in the wine in one of two general ways.

1. I wine doesn't develop more expressive fruit characteristics, but rather the level of tannin is too high and masking the delicate fruit components. as time goes on, the level of tannin and fruit components in the wine will drop off. The trick is, as a wine matures, the tannin will drop off before the fruit does, so you have a "window" of maturity. In youth, you have high tannin and fruit, but tannin masks all. In maturity, the tannin has diminished revealing the dynamic fruit components. And yes, a wine can be too old, which means that the fruit dies out as well.

2. The second way a wine can manifest itself as being "tight" and too young is more mysterious. I have found this characteristic of many great bordeaux in great years (especially left bank). In this case the wine "shuts down" for a few years. I don't know the scientific reason, but this can be simply described by saying that if you put one of these wines in a glass with a blindfold, you could almost mistake it as water. You open the same wine in 10 years and it will be magical. I found this to be the case with several of the 2000 Bordeaux. We had an amazing time with the 2000 D'Armailhac. I was working with a direct importer during the 2000 releases, and we tried hundreds of the wines. This wine in particular, we tried periodically over a 36 hour period and it never did develop any nose or expression on the palate. This is typical of this wine, and will tell a different story with age.

I hope this very long winded tangent helps a little.

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