Peter Sisseck

In the 1980s, Peter Sisseck started helping his uncle, who at the time was revolutionising the production of white wine at Château Rahoul. Having celebrated the 1982 vintage with him, Sisseck went on to finish his agricultural engineering studies in Denmark and then moved to California, joining the Simi winery in Sonoma where he experienced the American technological counterpoint in winemaking, at complete odds with the French method he was familiar with. 

In 1990, Sisseck landed in the Ribera del Duero region as technical director for Hacienda Monasterio. This is where, intrigued by the garage wines movement in Bordeaux – started by his friend Jean-Luc Thunevin (Valandraud) –, he embarked on his own project, outside of the Valladolid-style winery. This is how Pingus, one of the world’s most prestigious Spanish wines, was born. 

Pingus is Peter’s childhood nickname. Today, it’s the name of one of Europe’s most prominent representatives of the first garage wines. Pingus is legendary on the Spanish winemaking scene, having made its debut in a decade of profound renewal and now featuring among the most expensive Spanish wines on the international market. €1,400 a bottle. 100 Parker points. 

Sisseck has also been advising El Celler Mas d’en Gil in the Priorat region since 1999 and Quinta Sardonia in Sardón de Duero since 2002. His latest personal initiative at Dominio de Pingus is PSI, a newcomer that has already achieved the regularity of its forerunners.