1970 Marqués de Murrieta Rioja Ygay Reserva

Community Tasting Notes (5) Avg Score: 93.2 points

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View PSPatrick's profile
  • Report Issue

  2/8/2024 - PSPatrick wrote: 93 Points

  Bottle in very good condition; filled bottom neck, cork intact. Dried red fruit, dried red cherry, dried cranberry, dried blueberry, fig, date, intense dill, earth, leather, tobacco, espresso, spices, cinnamon, clove, nuts, and balsamic notes, with pronounced, balsamic acidity, fully resolved tannin, and very good length. Fully mature, but very much alive, with all the classic markers. The wine seemed to be on the edge of falling apart at first, but it pulled itself together after two hours in a small decanter and drank very well. Impressive!

  Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View drwine2001's profile
  • Report Issue

  6/18/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:

  Light garnet with browning-mature appearing without question. Opened about 30 minutes before pouring. On first sniff, raging volatile acidity and somewhat harsh fennel, but this settled and the more aggressive tones peeled back to show dull red berry, soil, and some leather. Lighter weight, quite delicate. Over 2 hours, this oscillated between possessing the remnants of gently sweet red fruit and threatening to fall apart and be overtaken by the high acidity. All in all, it held up much better than we expected from the initial impression, and was a very good, fully mature, mineral Rioja, somewhat past prime but still quite enjoyable with the meal. Amusingly, the table next to us had brought a bottle of 1981 Bosconia Gran Reserva; I'll bet that that was a wee bit more alive and ethereal than our wine.

  1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View forceberry's profile
  • Report Issue

  1/27/2017 - forceberry wrote: 95 Points

  Moderately deep brick red color with a quite tertiary mahogany hue. Wonderfully developed and attractive nose with complex, sweet-toned aromas of sweet dried figs, chocolate pudding, some dried black cherries, a little bit of dates, a hint of raisiny character and an umami touch of soy sauce along with a subtle whiff of balsamic VA. The wine is medium-bodied and surprisingly lively on the palate with quite savory flavors of crunchy cranberries, sour cherry bitterness, some dried figs, a little bit of raisiny fruit, a hint of tobacco and a touch of gravelly minerality. The wine is still pretty structured with its bright, high acidity, although the medium tannins have pretty much resolved, contributing mainly to the silky texture of the wine. The finish is dry, somewhat tertiary and extremely long with a slightest sense of tannic grip and persistent, layered flavors of roasted exotic spices, sour cherries, some tart lingonberries, a little bit of aged mocha character, a hint of dried dates and a touch of sweet raisiny fruit.
  
  A wonderfully complex and beautifully evolved Rioja Reserva that is still very much alive after more than 45 years. Although the wine is obviously at its plateau of maturity and most likely has been there for quite a while, it feels like the wine isn't going to be going downhill anytime soon. Outstanding stuff that performs much better than many a Rioja Gran Reserva of equal age. So very lovely.

  Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View BillBell73's profile
  • Report Issue

  11/21/2014 - BillBell73 wrote: 93 Points

  Still vibrant and dark red, a little VA but not off putting, surprisingly strong fruit and good acidity with a little dill on the finish. Plenty of life left in this one.

  Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment

• Options

  • Post a Comment
  • View cannym's profile
  • Report Issue

  12/31/2013 - cannym Likes this wine: 93 Points

  Lovely ruby to mahogany. Old furniture polish. Faded autumn fruits - redcurrant, blackberry. Leather and smoky meat. Lots of acidity. Long. Just the autumnal smoke, bonfire cooking, great complexity. Joy in a glass.

  Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment

Professional reviews have copyrights and you can view them here for your personal use only as private content. To view pro reviews you must either subscribe to a pre-integrated publication or manually enter reviews below. Learn more.