Tempos Vega Sicilia Valbuena 5 2015

Professional Ratings

• 97 James Suckling

  The aromas to this are so complex and enticing with nutmeg, dark berries, chocolate and white pepper. Full body. Dense and layered with so much wonderful, complex and succulent character. It just makes you want to drink it.

• 96 Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

  The 2015 Valbuena, a red blend of mostly Tempranillo with some 5% Merlot, is released in the fifth year after the harvest. It's explosive and showy, with a complex nose that shows a mixture of flowers and wild herbs, balsamic touches and great nuance. This wine has gained in complexity since the 2010 vintage, where they implemented some changes that increased the expressivity and precision of this wine. The tannins are fine-grained and there is very good balance, and the warm conditions of the year have been absorbed well by the wine. Despite the natural conditions of the year, the wine follows the path of freshness of the 2010.

• 94 Wine & Spirits

  While Vega-Sicilia’s Unico grows on the north-facing slopes across the road from the winery, the fruit for Valbuena focuses on colluvial soils at the base of the hills, including parcels across the river to the north. This vintage includes six percent merlot, the varieties from Bordeaux being a founding tradition of the estate. And the merlot seems to point up the wine’s perfumed cherry flavors. Though generously oaked, the wine’s elegance gives it a traditional feel, its fruit tannins equal to the oak tannins, the flavors lasting on licorice, warm purple plum and bright notes of strawberry tops. A classic vintage of Valbuena, this should age with grace.

• 94 Wine Spectator
  This big red hides a solid structure within a generous texture. Ripe plum and currant flavors are balanced by savory notes of dried herb, forest floor and black tea. Juicy acidity keeps this lively. Solid yet graceful. Tinto Fino and Merlot. Drink now through 2035.