Winemaker Notes
Marqués de Murrieta's flagship, a benchmark in the D.O. Ca Rioja with an unquestionable recognition worldwide. It represents the consistency of a project started in 1852 and masterfully maintained. Part of its greatness resides on the fact that it is only made in selected vintages. Castillo Ygay has developed a great complexity over the years without losing its exceptional freshness and demonstrating its superb quality and marked elegance.
Blend: 81% Tempranillo, 19% Mazuelo
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This shows a very attractive nose of dried roses, subtle chocolate, dried red fruit, spices and smoke for a fleshy and inviting aromatic profile. On the palate, it is both delineated and fleshy yet remains linear, with fresh acidity bringing vibrancy and drive, supported by elegant fruit. The tannins are remarkable, soft and melting, giving a controlled structure. Vibrant and youthful, it can be enjoyed now, but it has the build to age for decades. A blend of tempranillo and 19% mazuelo.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2012 was produced with a blend of 81% Tempranillo and 19% Mazuelo (Cariñena) from the plot La Plana in the Ygay estate, which was planted in 1950 at 485 meters above sea level, the highest in the Ygay property. The Tempranillo was picked between September 17th and 19th, and the Mazuelo was harvested on September 25th. The bunches were destemmed and lightly crushed and put to ferment in stainless steel for 10 days with constant pump-overs and délestages.
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Wine Spectator
This sophisticated red offers rich flavors of plum compote and dried cherry and raspberry fruit, with detailed notes of espresso, anise, mountain herbs and fresh earth. Shows lovely interplay between generosity and a sense of finesse, integrating fine, chalky tannins and orange peel acidity. Long and fragrant on the finish.
Hailed as the star red variety in Spain’s most celebrated wine region, Tempranillo from Rioja, or simply labeled, “Rioja,” produces elegant wines with complex notes of red and black fruit, crushed rock, leather, toast and tobacco, whose best examples are fully capable of decades of improvement in the cellar.
Rioja wines are typically a blend of fruit from its three sub-regions: Rioja Alta, Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Oriental, although specific sub-region (zonas), village (municipios) and vineyard (viñedo singular) wines can now be labeled. Rioja Alta and Alavesa, at the highest elevations, are considered to be the source of the brightest, most elegant fruit, while grapes from the warmer and drier, Rioja Oriental, produce wines with deep color, great body and richness.