Tempos Vega Sicilia Unico Reserva Especial (2022 Release)
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
Wine &
Spirits -
Wine
Spectator
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Blend: 95% Tinto Fino, 5% Cabernet-Sauvignon
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Extremely nuanced and complex nose that shows high-grade cigar box and cigars, fresh blackberries, orange peel, together with red-chili chocolate, walnut, iron and hints of cocoa powder. This is intense, elegant and savory with real finesse, savoriness and complexity. Juicy, dusty and immaculate tannins and an extremely long, savory finish that lasts over a minute. Mainly a blend of 2009 and 2011 and 2012. Surprisingly, this is already approachable now, but better after 2024.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The NV Único Reserva Especial 2022 Release is a blend of wines from 2008, 2010 and 2011, mostly Tinto Fino with some Cabernet Sauvignon mixing lots from the Único wines from those years. In the past, the blend was older vintages, but now it's wines that are around the same age as the Único. It has the complexity of mixing terroirs, vintages and grapes with parameters very similar to Único, 14.5% alcohol and good balance with a pH of 3.83 and 5.4 grams of acidity (measured in tartaric acid per liter). In the blend, they look for keeping the style of past blends, combining the more aged notes of the older wines and the freshness of the younger ones. I was very pleasantly surprised by the performance of this Reserva Especial, which seems to be going back to the character of the blends from yesteryear, with more finesse, elegance and nuance. This is perfumed, elegant, harmonious and balanced. It has very fine, already polished tannins and integrated acidity. 2008 and 2010 are cooler years, and they seem to give the blend this freshness and elegance. It has all the components, and especially the balance between all of them, to age nicely in bottle.
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Wine & Spirits
This is a blend of 2008, 2010 and 2011 and though Iturriaga did not make those vintages, he was the point person on a blending team of five, determining what wines would combine in the most long-lived synergy. The wine centers around a plump texture, racy flavors of fig and bloodorange, and fruit tannins edging from purple to black. Compelling now, it’s built for the ages.
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Wine Spectator
Delivers a gorgeous nose of tobacco, tar, leather and cured meat as a savory skein, which winds through the palate's notes of mulled black cherry, black plum reduction, wild sage and dried flowers. Medium- to full-bodied and plush in texture, this wine is both rich and expressive yet graceful and finely tailored. Tinto Fino with Cabernet Sauvignon. This edition blends the 2008, 2010 and 2011 vintages. Drink now through 2035.
Few wines have a history as distinguished as that of Vega Sicilia. Founded in the 1860’s, its reputation on its flagship vintage has for more than 100 years produced two great wines, each appropriately named "Único."
It was at Vega Sicilia in Ribera del Duero, two hours from Madrid, that Tempranillo proved its potential for greatness. When the estate's original founder, Don Eloy Lecanda Chaves returned from France with cuttings of Bordeaux varietals, he planted them alongside the indigenous variety, then known simply as Tinto del Pais, or “Country Red”, but today known as Tinto Fino or Tempranillo. Surprisingly, it was the Tempranillo that produced the superior wine.
Today, the market for Vega Sicilia is one of scarcity and increasing demand. Vega Sicilia’s growing fame and desirability is testament not only to the estate’s enduring legacy but to the world’s craving for wines of history and noble bearing. Vega Sicilia's vintage Único, Reserva Especial and Valbuena are such wines.
Notoriously food-friendly, long-lasting and Spain’s most widely planted grape, Tempranillo is the star variety of red wines from Rioja and Ribera del Duero. The Rioja terms Joven, Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva indicate both barrel and bottle time before release. Traditionally blended in Rioja with Garnacha, plus a bit of Mazuelo (Carignan) and Graciano, the Tempranillo in Ribera del Duero typically stands alone. Somm Secret—Tempranillo claims many different names depending on location. In Penedès, it is called Ull de Llebre and in Valdepeñas, goes by Cencibel. Known as Tinta Roriz in Portugal, Tempranillo plays an important role in Port wine.
Ribera del Duero, Spanish wine region, is located in northen Spain’s Castilla y León region, just a 2-hour drive from Madrid. While winemaking in this area goes back more than 2000 years, it was in the 1980s that 9 wineries applied for and were granted Denominación de Origen (D.O.) status. Today, more than 300 wineries call Ribera del Duero home, including some of Spain’s most iconic names.
Notable Facts Ribera’s main grape variety, Tempranillo, locally know as Tinto Fino, is perfectly suited to the extreme climate of the region, where it must survive scorching summers and frigid winters. Low yields resulting from conscientious tending to old vines planted in Ribera’s diverse soils types, give Ribera wines a distinctive depth and complexity not found in other Tempranillos. Rich and full-bodied, the spice, dark fruit and smoky flavors in a bold Ribera del Duero will pair well with roasted and grilled meats, Mexican food and tomato-based sauces.