The History
“La Terra è Viva” A continuous dialogue.
"The only motive of all the ideas I shall try to explain is my unlimited respect for Nature, in all of its forms, in all of its manifestations, in all of its mysteries, in all of its miracles that we are discovering little by little and that we shall never desist from admiring".
La Terra è Viva - Mario Incisa della Rocchetta
La Terra è Viva - Mario Incisa della Rocchetta
Vision and Mission
Preserve and Develop
The passion that feeds Tenuta San Guido has grown under the guidance of a lucky star which encompasses centuries of history. Tradition and culture are the roots of our brand.
A Recognised Commitment
An ecosystem founded on the balance between man and nature
Tenuta San Guido is the result of a very long tradition and of an ethical message handed down from generation to generation. Over the years, the dedication and commitment to the company's activities have led to many successes: Sassicaia, in the wine sector, the Razza Dormello Olgiata, in the breeding of thoroughbred horses and the Rifugio Faunistico Padule di Bolgheri, for the protection of nature and wildlife.
Heritage
A precious quality
“THE BOUQUET I HAVE BEEN SEARCHING FOR” Mario Incisa della Rocchetta
The Marchesi Incisa della Rocchetta are among the protagonists of Italian history, from the early middle ages to the dawn of the Baroque ages and beyond. Mario Incisa della Rocchetta was born in Rome in 1899, from a Piedmontese family. While studying agriculture in Pisa, he immediately developed a strong inclination for agronomy, dreaming already in the 1920s of finding perfection in agriculture and respect for the earth. He moved to Maremma in the early 1940’s, after marrying Clarice della Gheradesca in 1930, a descendent of one of the oldest families in Tuscany, the family of Count Ugolino, mentioned by Dante in The Divine Comedy. The Marchese immediately realised that this was going to be one of the most extraordinary biotypes in Mediterranean Europe and began experimenting with some French grape varieties. He concluded that cabernet “has the bouquet I have been searching for”, despite being so distant from the Tuscan and Piedmontese traditions of Sangiovese and Nebbiolo respectively. Thus, thanks to the first grafts received from the Dukes Salviati of Migliarino (close to Pisa) in the early 1940’s and he planted the first Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard in the hills that gently slopes down from the fortress of Castiglioncello to the sea. In fact, we know that in addition to Cabernet (Sauvignon and Franc), the grape variety used in the first planting was diverse and ranged from Canaiolo to Ciliegiolo to white grapes. The mass selection, orientated towards the exclusive use of Cabernet Sauvignon, happened more recently, between the years of 1960 and 1968.
Heritage
MARIO INCISA’S INTUITION
The genesis of Sassicaia
Mario recognised a remarkable similarity between his land in Bolgheri and the Graves region in Bordeaux, due to its predominantly gravelly and stony soil, mixed with clay—an ideal composition for producing great red wines.
In 1944, he therefore decided to plant the first vineyard of Cabernet Sauvignon: just over one hectare at an altitude of approximately 400 metres above sea level, in the area of Castiglioncello di Bolgheri.
This marked the dawn of Sassicaia.
From 1945 to 1967, Sassicaia remained a strictly private wine, reserved for family and close friends. The first vintage to be released on the market was the 1968.
Luigi Veronelli was the first to realise the greatness of this wine:
“Well dressed and brilliant, a dense and demure bouquet, of an uncommon sullen elegance …with a consistent backbone in a well-structured fabric.”
(Luigi Veronelli, Panorama, 1974)
In 1944, he therefore decided to plant the first vineyard of Cabernet Sauvignon: just over one hectare at an altitude of approximately 400 metres above sea level, in the area of Castiglioncello di Bolgheri.
This marked the dawn of Sassicaia.
From 1945 to 1967, Sassicaia remained a strictly private wine, reserved for family and close friends. The first vintage to be released on the market was the 1968.
Luigi Veronelli was the first to realise the greatness of this wine:
“Well dressed and brilliant, a dense and demure bouquet, of an uncommon sullen elegance …with a consistent backbone in a well-structured fabric.”
(Luigi Veronelli, Panorama, 1974)
Heritage
An ethical message handed down from the family.
NICOLÒ INCISA DELLA ROCCHETTA AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF A FAMILY BUSINESS
Nicolò Incisa finished school at the Rosey College in Rolle, and then graduated in Economics from the University of Geneva in 1959. He later joined his father Mario in managing the family estate, translating his ethical message with an entrepreneurial eye, aiming at promoting the excellence of the territory.
“Speaking of our experience, we can say that we have been lucky in the last century. Tenuta San Guido managed to survive during the Second World War, the agricultural activities were not disrupted. This is an encouraging example of how, with passion and perseverance, even in hard times, extraordinary things can be done.”
Nicolò Incisa della Rocchetta
Nicolò Incisa della Rocchetta
Heritage
Sustainability of environment and thinking
Honouring the past while looking to the future
Nicolò Incisa followed in his father’s footsteps, translating his vision into an entrepreneurial path that has promoted and enhanced the excellence of this unique territory.
The development of the estate includes the launch of Sassicaia on the market, the creation of new vineyard plantings, and the establishment of relationships with clients, importers, and collectors around the world.
Now Honorary Chairman, Nicolò Incisa has, over the past fifteen years, assembled and led a team of dedicated managers, ensuring the company’s growth while remaining true to its founding values.
The development of the estate includes the launch of Sassicaia on the market, the creation of new vineyard plantings, and the establishment of relationships with clients, importers, and collectors around the world.
Now Honorary Chairman, Nicolò Incisa has, over the past fifteen years, assembled and led a team of dedicated managers, ensuring the company’s growth while remaining true to its founding values.
Heritage
The Third Generation
The story continues
The third generation of the family as wine producers is now represented by five cousins, whose responsibility is to preserve the culture of the company, exalting and increasing its values. Priscilla, daughter of Nicolò Incisa, has the responsibility of representing and telling, as responsible for external relations, the indissoluble bond between the company and the family, a team with heterogeneous skills and passions, grown within and outside the boundaries of the estate, maintaining a strong bond with the territory.
Heritage
“Tenuta San Guido for me is a cultural and natural heritage, to be preserved and handed down to future generations. Here it feels like time has never passed but nothing is still, everything is alive”
Priscilla Incisa
Territory
The poetry of places
That part of Tuscany where good wine is produced.
The ancient and splendid land that Clarice della Gherardesca inherited is a Mediterranean park stretching between the hill of the remote fortress of Castiglioncello and the coast of dunes and marshes. A 2,500 hectare property in the heart of Maremma, stretches over 13 kilometres from the hill to the sea and along the famous cypress avenue.
This is how it appears in Carducci’s memoirs:
“[…] the circle of my childhood and early adolescence. There I lived, or rather wondered, from 1838 to April 1849.”(Letters)
“[…] the circle of my childhood and early adolescence. There I lived, or rather wondered, from 1838 to April 1849.”(Letters)
Territory
A corridor between the sea and the hills
MARKED BY THE CYPRESSES OF CARDUCCI'S MEMORY.
A feeling of peace accompanies us as we walk through Tenuta San Guido in all its dimensions. From the sandbanks created by the sea breeze, through to the holm oaks and ash trees that shade the marshland to the cypress avenue. The cypresses that run through olive groves, cultivated fields, and horse tracks, lead to the gateway of Bolgheri and, when you turn right, steep and narrow roads bring you to Castiglioncello di Bolgheri, the cradle of Sassicaia, immersed in a vast Mediterranean forest.
Territory
MICROCLIMATE AND TERRITORY
Soil and climate conditions.
The soil, partially clayey, located at an altitude between 60 and 400 metres above sea level, with a west/south-west exposure, show different and composite morphological characteristics, with a strong presence of limestone in areas rich in alberese, gabbro and stone.
The climate has its own peculiarities: the embrace of hills stretching from Bibbona to Castagneto protects the vineyards and olive groves from north-easterly winds, while in summer, this corridor is cooled by sea breezes. The energy and light from the sun are reflected into the sea, irradiating the hills. Which holds back the sea breeze and generates refreshing moisture. These dense, unspoiled woods are an exceptional natural setting. This microclimate characterises Tenuta San Guido.
The climate has its own peculiarities: the embrace of hills stretching from Bibbona to Castagneto protects the vineyards and olive groves from north-easterly winds, while in summer, this corridor is cooled by sea breezes. The energy and light from the sun are reflected into the sea, irradiating the hills. Which holds back the sea breeze and generates refreshing moisture. These dense, unspoiled woods are an exceptional natural setting. This microclimate characterises Tenuta San Guido.
People
NICOLO INCISA’S APPROACH
“Our commitment to the family business and our attachment to the land is our true strength. Equally important are the dedication, skills and vision of the people we work with "
Nicolò Incisa della Rocchetta, Honorary President of Tenuta San Guido
Nicolò Incisa della Rocchetta was born in Rome in 1936 where he lived until 1942, when he moved to Bolgheri. In 1948 he began his studies in Switzerland at the school of Le Rosey, on the shores of Lake Geneva. In 1959 he graduated from the University of Geneva with a Bachelor of Science in Economics. Back in Italy, he supported his father Mario Incisa in managing the family estate; he inherited his principles and put them into practice in the concrete, day-to-day work. Over the years, Nicolò built the company we know today, which sees the strategic vision and technical expertise of specialized managers alongside the family. Nicolò Incisa is today the Honorary President of Tenuta San Guido.
Nicolò Incisa della Rocchetta, Honorary President of Tenuta San Guido
Nicolò Incisa della Rocchetta was born in Rome in 1936 where he lived until 1942, when he moved to Bolgheri. In 1948 he began his studies in Switzerland at the school of Le Rosey, on the shores of Lake Geneva. In 1959 he graduated from the University of Geneva with a Bachelor of Science in Economics. Back in Italy, he supported his father Mario Incisa in managing the family estate; he inherited his principles and put them into practice in the concrete, day-to-day work. Over the years, Nicolò built the company we know today, which sees the strategic vision and technical expertise of specialized managers alongside the family. Nicolò Incisa is today the Honorary President of Tenuta San Guido.
People
An entrepreneurial vision
THAT LOOKS FAR AWAY BUT ACTS IN THE PRESENT.
Managing and accompanying a family business with an ancient tradition and a valuable brand means considering its future, tens of years from Today, and not stopping to foresee just tomorrow or the day after tomorrow.
It is an exercise that implies strategy and vision, listening and working, in an uninterrupted dialogue with the old and new generations.
It is an exercise that implies strategy and vision, listening and working, in an uninterrupted dialogue with the old and new generations.
People
The future built on experience
Alessandro Berlingieri
“Tenuta San Guido is a farming estate that looks to the future while remaining rooted in its traditions—traditions founded on research, observation, and the development of Nature’s finest expressions, with respect for the land, the animals, and the people who inhabit and work it. These are the assets in which we invest to enhance the quality of our products and to enrich the local area, creating value for shareholders, employees, clients, and suppliers.
Alongside the family, whose passion for the art of Nature and sense of responsibility towards the wider community remain central, there is a team of professional managers committed to continuous improvement. Their targeted interventions respect the harmony of the ecosystem and deliver meaningful, long-term sustainability. In this way, our livestock farming, the wildlife refuge, the Mediterranean scrubland, and the deliberate, skilled craftsmanship of our work all contribute to the success of our products.”
Alessandro Berlingieri, CEO since 2018 and Chairman of Tenuta San Guido since 2022
Alongside the family, whose passion for the art of Nature and sense of responsibility towards the wider community remain central, there is a team of professional managers committed to continuous improvement. Their targeted interventions respect the harmony of the ecosystem and deliver meaningful, long-term sustainability. In this way, our livestock farming, the wildlife refuge, the Mediterranean scrubland, and the deliberate, skilled craftsmanship of our work all contribute to the success of our products.”
Alessandro Berlingieri, CEO since 2018 and Chairman of Tenuta San Guido since 2022
People
PRODUCT QUALITY AS A PRIORITY
Carlo Paoli
“Each day, we observe the evolution of the land and its fruits, drawing on memory and experience to find new solutions that enhance their value. The teachings of our mentors and the expertise gained over many years guide our daily actions in a company journey that is rooted above all in the pursuit of product quality and in care for the land from which it originates. Embracing the expectations of those who appreciate our work—and striving to meet and exceed them—is both our duty and our challenge.”
Carlo Paoli, General Manager and Head of Production since 2009, Chief Executive Officer of Tenuta San Guido since 2025
Carlo Paoli, General Manager and Head of Production since 2009, Chief Executive Officer of Tenuta San Guido since 2025
People
Art and crafts: the craftsmanship that becomes art in the exercise of the profession
Rural craftsmanship is the hallmark of a company that thinks like a family. At Tenuta San Guido, it is tastes rather than trends, human inclinations rather than rules dedicated by others that set the standard. When meticulousness and attention to detail are more important than the finished work, craftsmanship becomes so exclusive that it nears art.
Many men and women with different professional backgrounds work at Tenuta San Guido, embracing the ethical conduct of the company and passing it on in the exercising of their own expertise.
Many men and women with different professional backgrounds work at Tenuta San Guido, embracing the ethical conduct of the company and passing it on in the exercising of their own expertise.
