Peter Sisseck’s PSI is back
Peter Sisseck is one of the most respected and quietly influential winemakers in the world. His flagship wine, Pingus, long ago earned cult status and global acclaim for redefining what Spanish wine could be. But PSI may be his most meaningful project—not because it is the most expensive, but because it reflects his deepest connection to the land and the growers of Ribera del Duero.
PSI is sourced from old-vine Tempranillo planted along Ribera’s legendary Golden Mile, the most prized stretch of vineyards in the region and home to many of Spain’s greatest estates. These are not young, high-yielding vines pushed for production. Many of the parcels feeding PSI are 40, 50, even 60 years old, dry-farmed, and naturally low-yielding. Old vines like these don’t shout—they whisper with depth, mineral nuance, and effortless balance.
Since its first vintage, PSI has been a masterclass in consistency. Year after year, it delivers the unmistakable signature of Sisseck: precision without austerity, power without excess, and a purity of fruit that feels both modern and timeless. While Pingus itself may be unreachable for most, PSI offers a true window into Sisseck’s philosophy at a price that still invites regular enjoyment.
The excellence of PSI on full display somewhat despite the 2022 vintage. This is a growing season that produced ripe, expressive fruit, high alcohols, and a tiny crop due to drought. Some wines are showing very heavy. However, Peter with PSI created a perfumed, elegant, relatively low alcohol wine in the 2022 vintage. The wine opens with deep blackberry, plum, and violets, grounded by iron-rich earth, cocoa, and subtle spice. The tannins are polished but present, framing the wine beautifully and giving it both immediate appeal and the bones to age gracefully. It is a wine built from relationships with growers, from meticulous vineyard selection, and from a relentless commitment to quality.
This is a wine you can open tonight and fall in love with, or cellar confidently knowing it will only gain complexity. It is serious without being severe, generous without being loose, and one of the most dependable values among the world’s elite wine regions. The 2022 PSI is another reminder of why Peter Sisseck remains a benchmark for excellence in Spain, and why Ribera del Duero continues to stand among the great wine regions of the world.
94 Points, Wine Advocate
The bottled 2022 PSI follows the character of the sample I tasted last year: it's clean, expressive and open. It's perfumed, elegant, floral and quite attractive and does not transmit any heat. In fact, it has contained ripeness and around 13.8% alcohol. They have improved the selection tremendously, and the wine has gained in precision; it's better each year. There is something that reminds me of the old vintages of Pesquera (1994 and before), with notes of orange peel and aromatic herbs. It's medium-bodied, has fine tannins and very good freshness. Only 20% of the volume matured in barrel and the rest in large oak vats (2,000-, 5,000- and 10,000-liter ones), and the élevage is quite respectful of the wine. This should be readily available, as they produced 360,000 bottles in 2022. It's detailed and hand-crafted, real wine in good volume, coming from 700 plots of old vines, all in all around 8% Garnacha. Despite the conditions of the year, this has to be one of the finest vintages of PSI. (LG)