Wine & Spirits - Winter 2019 - 76

O LD WO R LD

Vega-Sicilia

La Rioja Alta

SPAIN | RIBERA DEL DUERO
Vega Sicilia defined the robust, long-lived reds of Ribera del
Duero long before the appellation came to exist.

SPAIN | RIOJA
Working with long aging regimens in barrels made by its own
cooperage, La Rioja Alta crafts classic, pure Riojas.

THE LEGENDARY VINEYARD AT VEGA-SICILIA
dates to 1864, when Don Eloy Lacanda Chaves
brought cuttings of cabernet sauvignon, malbec
and merlot from Bordeaux to Valladolid, to augment his tinto fino, the local name for tempranillo. Bordeaux trained, Lacanda Chaves created
a style of wine based on blending, using tinto
fino as a base, enriching it with his Bordeaux
varieties through extended macerations and long
aging in oak barrels. The wines, grown on the
limestone plateau above the Duero River, were
among the most coveted collectibles in Spain
when the Alvarez family purchased the property
in 1982, and continue to live up to their reputation to this day. Don Pablo Alvarez now oversees
371 acres of vines at the estate, and initiated a
project in 2002 to create a range of 24 clonal
selections from a parcel of centenarian vines,
sustaining the DNA of the original plants of the
estate. The first plantings from the new generation are now coming into maturity. -R.D.T.

DON PABLO
ALVAREZ

JULIO
SAENZ

LA PEDRIZA
VINEYARD

Ribera del Duero Unico Reserva Especial ($715,
95 points) Honoring an old Spanish tradition of
blending vintages in order to create a special cellar
selection, Vega-Sicilia holds back less than ten percent of their Unico wine every year to create this rare
bottling. The current release-a blend of wines from
2006, 2007 and 2009-feels luxurious in its supple
textures and nuanced flavors, notes of leather, dried
figs and spice pointing up the impressive freshness
of the fruit.

FOUNDED:

1864

OWNER:

The Alvarez family
WINEMAKER:

Gonzalo Iturriaga

2009 Ribera del Duero Unico ($575, 94 points)
Unico is a selection of Vega Sicilia's top parcels of
tempranillo and cabernet sauvignon. The vines, averaging 35 years old, grow in the rocky quartz and limestone soils at the southern end of the estate, with a
cool northern exposure. Vinified with ambient yeasts,
then aged for five years in barrel, the 2009 remains
remarkably fresh, with tart red-cherry flavor underneath a sheen of oak, and warm, savory tannins. It's
compelling now, but will gain beauty with age.

Enrique Macias
ACRES OWNED: 371
CASE PRODUCED:

26,000
ESTATE GROWN:

100%
IMPORTER:

Europvin USA,
Van Nuys, CA
76

2009 Rioja Gran Reserva 904 ($60, 95 points)
Primarily tempranillo with a small amount of graciano, this bottling commemorates the 1904 acquisition of Bodegas Ardanza, which gave La Rioja Alta
access to some of the region's most prized vineyards.
A blend of fruit from 60-year-old vines in Briñas,
Labastida and Villalba and aged in American oak barrels for four years, this is at once delicate and robust,
melding resinous wood notes with spice and mellow
red-fruit flavors.

1864
Guillermo
de Aranzabal

FOUNDED:
OWNER:

WINEMAKER:

Julio Saenz
VITICULTURIST:

Roberto Frias

VITICULTURIST:

2014 Ribera del Duero Valbuena 5 ($210, 93
points) A blend of tempranillo with a small amount
of cabernet sauvignon and merlot, this is fermented
in stainless-steel tanks and then aged for five years
(three in oak and two in bottle). The 2014 retains its
freshness even through its concentration and depth,
its floral tones lifting the dark, earthy flavors, and
a tannic structure that will allow the wine to age at
least another decade.

WINE & SPIRITS

BUYING GUIDE 2020

IN 1890, FIVE SPANISH GRAPE-GROWING families combined forces to establish La Rioja Alta.
Today, the company has grown to include 741
acres of vines-enough to supply the estate's
entire production-as well as wineries in Rías
Baixas, Ribera del Duero and Rioja Alavesa.
Julio Saenz, who's worked for the company since
1996, oversees production for them all, working to preserve the company's traditional style
of wines. This year saw a string of releases from
2008, 2009 and 2010 that raised La Rioja Alta
into our Top 100 for the first time since 1999. We
clearly aren't the only people to have noticed the
quality of the wines: La Rioja Alta ranked among
the most popular Spanish wines in our Annual
Restaurant Poll. -R.D.T.

ACRES OWNED:

1,000
CASES PRODUCED:

N/A
ESTATE GROWN:

100%
IMPORTER:

Skurnik Wines &
Spirits, NY

2005 Rioja Gran Reserva 890 ($160, 94 points)
The 890 is an homage to the winery's founding in
1890 and the first bottling by Albert Vigier, its original
French winemaker. It's a selection made after fermentation of the best lots, which are then put into barrels; the team spends the next six years checking in
on them, narrowing the selection. In 2005, the final
selection amounted to 199 barrels, which went into
bottle in 2012. Today, the 2005 has taken on a silken
texture, with refined tannins and complex earthy
tones layered with notes of wild strawberry and spice.
2009 Rioja Reserva Viña Ardanza ($32, 91
points) Since the first vintage in 1942, this wine has
been a blend of 70 to 80 percent tempranillo from
Fuenmayor and Cenicero in Rioja Alta rounded out
with old-vine garnacha from the higher elevations
of Rioja Baja. The 2009 is a delicate Rioja with dill
scents that play well off the wine's gamey maturity.

vineyard photo by erredehierro

Top 100 Wineries

Wine & Spirits - Winter 2019

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