SassuVini Cannonau di Sardegna RossoSassu

We have Luca Depperu Sassu, a 27-year-old winemaker from Luras, in the north of Sardinia, to thank for the wonderful RossoSassu wine. Over the years this location has received much attention and interest from anthropologists and historians who have discovered quite unique features of this area such as the presence of a dialect little spoken in this part of the island. The climate and soil here are also quite special, and allow grapes as delicate as the Nebbiolo to thrive. Seeing the unique character of this area, Luca gave up his career as a topographer, and decided to buy some virtually forgotten vineyards, saving them from an inevitable abandonment or destruction. The caring attention he devoted to the vineyards slowly led to a successful revival of the plants, and nowadays, these vines — planted back in the 1950s among Mediterranean forestland — are rewarding Luca's efforts with the wonderful fruit used to produce RossoSassu.

At altitudes of over 300 metres, the old Cannonau (Grenache) vines have to struggle through granite soils to find what sustenance they can to produce a small amount of excellent fruit. The vinification is carried out purely in steel tanks before the wine is bottled and sealed with, of course, a Sardinian wine cork. Tasting this wine, it is hardly surprising that the RossoSassu was deservedly named one of the best wines in the international competition, Grenaches du Monde de 2018. It evokes a flavour of the Cannonau variety as well as the distinctive forestland character of the island. It is clear in the glass and delights us with aromas of ash, plums, flowers, and candy. Ripe strawberries meet the acidity of blackcurrant which stimulates the taste buds and brings liveliness to the wine, while standing alongside fine tannins in a perfect balance. This wine has a long life to come and, if left, it will become more elegant over time, but it also seduces wine-lovers from day one thanks to its honesty and transparency.