2021 Dominio de Pingus PSI Ribera del Duero 750 ml

Peter Sisseck’s Pingus burst on the scene in 1995. Ribera del Duero has never been the same.

His first vintage scored in the 96–100 range from Robert Parker, grabbing the world’s attention and piquing curiosity about the old vines of the historic region. Parker called it “one of the greatest and most exciting wines I have ever tasted,” building feverish anticipation.

But on its way to America, the highly anticipated first release of Pingus and the label’s “second wine,” Flor de Pingus, disappeared when a transport ship carrying them sank beneath the sea off of the Azores. This just supercharged demand for these alluring wines. 

The idea of PSI, which was created in 2007, had been in Sisseck’s mind for years. He was bothered that, although Ribera’s top vineyards could produce spectacular wine, the overall fruit quality in the region was not up to snuff. Growers paid by the ton had no incentive to limit yields, and their liberal use of chemicals had rendered Ribera’s soils bereft of microbes. 

Knowing he was unlikely to be able to purchase vineyards from farmers whose lives were inextricable from their land, Sisseck engaged the growers’ passion for their land by incentivizing them to preserve their old-clone, head-pruned vineyards and produce better, more natural grapes. He works with former Alonso y Yerro winemaker Pablo Rubio to identify and engage the growers with the most potential, then supply technical advice to help them grow better fruit. 

Look no further than this bottle to gauge the success of the venture. Comprising 90% Tempranillo and 10% Garnacha, earned 96 points, making it one of Vinous’s top five Spanish wines of the vintage.