This 1989 Unico is a blend of 80% Tinto Fino and 20% Cab Sauv, picked early from 30th September. Receives 3 years in barrel and 2 years in bottle prior to release.
Question with Unico is always, what is the ideal preparation? Some do a full large flask decant for five hours of air, others simply bottle-breathe for 12 or more hours.
Seductive nose with florality and deeper earthy notes, including coffee. Dark ruby-colored with a complex nose, and certainly shows that this can age another 5-20 years. Unico is nothing but legendary with age. Gorgeous, minty bouquet with blackberry and crushed violet flowers too. Interesting hints of strawberry jam as it develops.
Develops nicely with gentle aeration in the glass. Palate is silky smooth, with such purity of fruit - Develops weight towards the finish, What a treat to have one of the 105,860 bottles produced.
Lastly, this is a monumental wine with such memorable aromatics, and that divine textured and layered mouthfeel.
Super generous of LMC for sharing this on the occasion of bro RN's birthday celebration, with the theme "First Growth Specials".
Stoked, KL, Malaysia 1st May 2024
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At Rare wine dinner (Muru). Funky and red fruity notes on the nose. Medium bodied, smooth and silky, showing subtle mellow red fruit with umami/funky notes and smooth and almost resolved tannins. This was nicely developed.
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Beat the '90 Latour: My contribution. Echoing what PCLIN said, I never had a Unico that moved me but I put the bottle in the capable hands of Dibbs who gave it the ideal preparation, i.e. five hours of air, for it to show wonderfully.
This was the first wine served and it was roaring from the start. Incredibly seductive nose that rivalled the best Burgs or Piedmont - so lifted and floral at the same time with a distinct roasted coffee note. Such a youthful palate that it could have passed off as a wine half its age, silky and pure dark red fruits but with a firm backbone. I value the nose and texture as the most important characteristics in wines and this scored full marks for both in my book. Did fade slightly towards the end of dinner though. Brilliant wine.
Beat the 1990 Latour: Group’s and my WOTN. We had two Unico skeptics in the group and by the end of the night, we had two new converts. The 89 is drinking absolutely beautifully with a flirty Burgundian elegance. What it might lack in concentration vs the Latour it more than made up with its finesse and an absolute knockout of a nose. With higher acidity than the Bordeaux’s, more red fruited and sexy, it defies classification and stands as a truly singular wine that delivers year after year.
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Single blind. Co WOTN with ‘90 Latour. This had the most explosive nose of all the wines tonight, I confidently guessed Dujac CldR without taking a sip initially, lol. Had never been moved by any Unico previously despite many encounters, this was a first. Good length and depth with years to go. Great showing tonight.
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Beat the 1990 Latour: Garnet with bricking towards the rim. A bit of a roasted quality on the nose. Initially fairly tannic and not very aromatic but opened up later with more air. Very bright aromatically indeed then. Clearly still a long life ahead. The favorite at the table and while I liked it it did not really speak to me that night. Had this initially as the 88 Mouton given the tannins and muted aromatics, then the 90 Latour as the wine opened up, and only decided on Unico after revisiting later when it became clear that this was no Bordeaux.
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Pre-Paulee Warm-up Dinner (House of Nanda - Chicago IL): Alongside 1990. All black fruited, lots here, but clearly still brooding. Impressive weight and density tells me how great this wine can/will be, but tonight it was slightly less expressive than previous bottles, even with some decanter time. 93 points tonight, 94-95 points in the future.
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Pre La Paulée Dinner with friends (Home): 89-90 side-by-side. Decanted for 2-3 hours. A sensational wine and oh so young. Packed with pure, seamless fruit and matched with a elegant but still present structure. At peak and should hold for a long time.
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In a great spot and drinking really well. Still showing nice dark fruit, damp soil, and grilling spices that are well integrated. Wonderfully balanced by the structure. Cork was nearly perfect with no signs of any seepage.
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Boxing Day dinner at the Royal Crescent. Finally an Unico with some real bottle age, and such a difference compared to younger bottles. Tertiary characteristics but still very much alive with some enjoyable spice elements that distinguish it (but only so slightly) from an aged Bordeaux.
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Dinner with Greg & Sayo (Clarence, 25/F H-Code, 45 Pottinger Street, Hong Kong): From Greg, from a case of 12 he and I bought on release. Decanded too briefly for 2+ hours on arrival at the restaurant but saved for another 2 hours (I last decanted a bottle for 8 hours last week which seemed better). That said the wine just 'sang' from first pour. Incredibly linear and 'Alice Down the Rabbit Hole' from first impact on the nose through to the ridiculously long reverberant and resonant finale on the final swallow. This has a lean elegance that requires a bit of experience to truly appreciate....and it has only just entered it drinking window, so give it another 10+ years to appeal to a wider hedonistic audience. Wow...this is a very high score on my scale.
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Second of a case bought on release and opened for a special birthday lunch with a mate I knew would really appreciate it. Decanted for c5 hours then re-bottled overnight. Semi translucent bur deep jeweled ruby core. Nose is still quite tightly coiled and reticent but showing enormous depth and purity of ‘fossilised’ black and red berry fruits. Anthracite. Palate shows lovely angular poise, very high cheek-boned and pure intense black cherry and blackcurrant reduction. Wow… is this resonant or what? Massive BLAM! Oh gosh, I’m going into reveries…. and will only improve as it opens up more in the coming 10-15 years. 96-97 for now.
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Kleur: Robijnrood met een oranjebruine verkleuring aan de rand. Aroma / bouquet: Wow, een briljant en elegant bouquet met accenten van cederhout, leer, kersencompote en gedroogde pruimen. En geen spoor van tè-tertiaire aroma's als maggi of madeira. Deze wijn is 31 jaar oud en nog steeds alive-and-kickin'. Smaak / Afdronk: Ik heb zelden een zo belegen wijn in mijn glas gehad met een concentratie en balans als deze 1989 Vega. Verfijnd maar krachtig met een mooie balans tussen mondvullende zuren, tannines en alcohol. Serieus lange afdronk. Algemeen / potentieel: Ik beschouw mezelf als vineus gerontofiel in regressie. Wijnen konden me niet voldoende belegen zijn. Ik begin inmiddels terug te komen op dat standpunt. Maar voor Vega Sicilia maak ik graag een uitzondering…. Wat een extreme klassewijn….. 50 + Kleur: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 14 + Smaak / Afdronk: 19 + Algemeen / potentieel: 9 = 97/100
Color: Ruby red with an orange-brown discoloration on the edge. Aroma / bouquet: Wow, a brilliant and elegant bouquet with accents of cedar wood, leather, cherry compote and prunes. And no trace of tertiary aromas such as maggi or madeira. This wine is 31 years old and still alive and kickin '. Taste / Finish: I have seldom had such a matured wine in my glass with a concentration and balance as this 1989 Vega. Refined but powerful with a nice balance between mouth-filling acids, tannins and alcohol. Seriously long aftertaste. General / potential: I consider myself vineus gerontophile-in-regression. Wines could not be sufficiently mature. I am now starting to return to that position. But I would like to make an exception for Vega Sicilia…. What an extreme class wine… .. 50 + Color: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 14 + Taste / Finish: 19 + General / potential: 9 = 97/100
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Decades of Decadence - "The 9's" (Buellton, CA): Aromas of worn cedar, leather, cassis, sawdust, earth and mushroom. Silky and seamless palate and just expands and broadens as it goes. Very secondary but plenty of fruit, huge middle with great depth. Very finely structured with big depth on the finish. Broad and massive, but with stately elegance and grace. Showing beautifully.
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Black fruit: blackcurrant, cherries Cured meat, leather Underbrush Edit: after 15 mins the nose is much more developed, dried fruit - cherries, cranberries; fully-integrated vanilla/oak
Dry Fruit more advanced on the palate - mix of fresh and dried fruit, prunes? Long finish High tannins Med acid Med body Med- alcohol (12.5% tasted vs 13.5% actual)
Finish for days. Super good.
"It tastes good. IT TASTES GOOD!"
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Best bottle (Restaurant Holz und Feuer, Kirchheim, Germany): Glass: Gabriel Standard Popped and poured, not decanted. Clear, deep tawny color. Clean, pronounced and amazingly complex nose. Very deep, herbaceous, menthol, red fruit, espresso, leather. On the palate very elegant and balanced. Some extract sweetness. Wonderful ripe acidity. 13,5%. Fine grained tannin. Amazing length! Still very young with a bright and shiny future. It will certainly continue to develop for at least another decade. 95-97
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What a gorgeously youthful Unico. Chock full of red fruit with spice from fruit and oak, and a clear, well-integrated American Oak element. It's pretty hard to believe this is a 30 year old wine, as it's still so primary and fresh. Give it another 10 years -- upside from here.
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Dinner at Nico Osteria: Well this is a fireworks display. Still remarkably youthful and barely showing any of its 30 years of age - the fruit here still seems very primary and youthful, augmented nicely by the oak, and showing more savoury earthy and smoky notes on the back end. There's striking power and intensity on the palate here, but it also feels remarkably polished and graceful for such a big, intense wine - there's really bright acidity keeping it very fresh, and a remarkably long finish.
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Dinner at Nico Osteria (Chicago, IL): Wow, if this is what you mean by fruit and (American) oak bomb, then I'm totally on board with that concept. What an absolutely insane wine -- a huge array of black and red fruits, bolstered by that green dill element of the oak. This is a full-throttle, intense wine, with an inky black complexion. There's still so much fruit here that needs to resolve; in fact, I suspect with the appropriate amount of time this may well surpass the brilliant 1982 (which I had a week or two ago). I'll also add, that despite all the ripe fruit and sweetness and (correctly done) jamminess, this wine still has a huge streak of acidity running through it, which brightens that dark complexion considerably.
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Wow, I didn't even write any notes about this as I was drinking it, don't know how that happened. Think I was just enjoying the wine, which was seamless and pure, full of life and depth. Lovely.
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PNP into Zalto Burgundy glass (“Fruit” day): Medium ruby with bricking rims.
Top flight aged Bordeaux nose - Mature red fruits infused with florals, dried herbs and soy-like notes. Some very nice dried leafy notes too - Very enticing and classic.
Very good acidity and tannin structure at this stage but can drink now.
94 points.
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Truly excellent. Let breathe for an hour. Decanted and it was big, smooth and delicious. After an hour the tannins started to reassert themselves. In short, very good now, but can only get better with time. If oyu drink it now, i would give it at least 3 hours decant unless you are going to drink within an hour.
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I think at 29 years young it’s in a wonderful spot. Pure elegance, beautiful red fruit, I’m basically speechless. Not much more I can say other than to those who have this will love it at this spot
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this was in desperat need of air and got it, as the rest of the bottle spend the night in the decanter. It helped; the wine evolved and showed a classical Spanish presence, spicy, smokey, cool, very much a Vega S.
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Decanted for 2 hours. Could have used less time. Probably 30 mins or less. Elegant sweet dark fruit, tobacco, ash, and licorice. Softened up with aeration. This is another bottle that is very expressive and elegant tonight like the 83.
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1989 VEGA SICILIA UNICO GRAN RESERVA RIBERA del DUERO- released in 2003; 80% Tempranillo, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon; a perfect bottle; perfect balance, bright and righteous fruit profile, great silky texture, depth and complexity with layers upon layers unfolding and a long, welcomed finish; some of the flavours I got included spicy, earthy, tobacco, sandalwood accented red cherry fruit
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A fabulous showing for this wine which is just turning the corner into drinkability. Has great intensity with delicious black fruits along with some smoky black cherry and tobacco. Great acidity which is in perfect balance with the very ripe fruit. Finishes gloriously intense and complex with notes of minerals, sweet red earth and an array of spices. Still quite young but it's so good now. At IB&WS dinner at Jungsik, NYC. 96+
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Unico tasting (27 different vintages) at the Rheingau Gourmet Festival 2017: clear bordeaux red colour; while a smell revealed not much, upon drinking aromas like eucalyptus, violet, cherry and herbs (like the swiss ricola sweet) developed in the mouth; the wine had a medium acidity.
Vintages 1st flight: 1972-1980-1985-1987-1989
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From a regular bottle, not from my cellar. A bottle I drank earlier this year showed far better. It should have needed only 20mins of air to show the rich beef stock and glycerin I love in the wine - but it just didn't come. Without that, the oak character wasn't balanced and the wine was strangely subdued with more nutty (read: tertiary) flavours. A good wine, with plenty of interest but not the great wine it should have been. More air didn't help. Good bottles are still improving and will last 20yrs, but this didn't seem to have much future - I expect it will just dry out. Maybe bottle variation at play? Need to ask the winery. Usually rate this 96pts, but this bottle... 92-93pts?
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Dark fruit and cedar to the nose. Tobacco, chocolate, plums and herbs. Silky with great power, earthiness and a finish that was very long. Truly beautiful. Drinking well and may improve significantly over time. Had an edge over the 91 which was also gorgeous
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A strange initial smell (inc mild VA) took 20mins to blow off (from perfect bottle) to show a fantastic rich beef stock taste, aromatic fireworks, glycerin, balanced acid and fantastically rich and broad mouthfeel. A class act with lots of time left in the tank - at least 10yrs and I'm not even sure this has peaked! Need to buy this, which is incredibly drinkable, or the 1994. It still shows tonnes of oak, but it's so well balanced with the rich mouthfeel, savoury tastes and aromatic interest that it just... Works. Lovely with steak.
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Throwndown in Madtown; 8/27/2015-8/29/2015 (Madison, WI): Single blind. Nose of dark berries, dusty rose petals , cigar, and espresso. Palate repeats the nose with a lively finish and tons of acidity and tannic grip. This improved steadily throughout the tasting and by the end in was in the top four for me just behind the 60, the 90 Lafite and the 91. Would love to see this in about 20 years.
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MWS Wine Tasting and Dinner (Restaurant De Burgemeester *, Linschoten, Netherlands): Old-fashioned, rich, quite oxidative nose, nutty, warm, concentrated and with more than a hint of hint of volatility, powerful but mature, rich tannins, not as impressive as I remember from my previous tasting in 2005 but a very solid, impressive Ribeira del Duero.
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Decanted 3 hrs. Improved in the glass fro the 2 1/2 hrs of Dinner. Dark dried berries with dusty rose , cigar and coffee nose. A lot of acid to keep things lively and tells me 25 years more of life left. Crazy long finish. This is one of those rare wine that gets stronger and deeper hour after hour in the glass. will most likely merit a higher score in the future.
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double decanted for a couple of hours. strangely subdued, especially drinking next to 89 conseillante. underlying fruit is there, but has it entered a shutdown phase?
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- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Els12golafres Wine Tasting Group: http://vinosclasicos.blogspot.com.es/2014/10/vega-sicilia-unico-1989-magnum.html - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Botella abierta con antelación y aireado durante casi un par de horas sin decantar. Por experiencia estos magnums de VS suelen necesitar un poco más de tiempo para que se abran respecto a la botella de 75 cl. Corcho extraordinario, sin apenas estar manchado, completamente elástico. Ya podrían aprender otras bodegas... De color cereza granatoso de capa media-alta, oscuro, tapado, limpísimo, sin precipitados y con gran sensación de juventud. Casi mancha la copa. Reflejos rojizos y violáceos, anaranjados, brillante. Ribete diminuto, marronoso.
Sorprendente al comenzar a servirlo. Potente, directo, crudo, predominan los primarios por encima de todo: pétalos, jacinto, hibiscus, cerezas picotas y un montón de fruta roja en sazón. Este revolcón de juventud no está reñido con un conjunto que al ir respirando se muestra cada vez más elegante. Tostados de calidad, maderas de las buenas, un punto de cuero y rosas ajadas y popurrí de pimientas molidas de fondo. Lo que se ve es de gran calidad pero sin alcanzar el despliegue esperado. La sensación es que aún tiene que curtirse con más guarda en botella. Abierto prematuramente!!
En boca está más hecho. Pleno, maduro, redondo, sin asomo de aristas. Está templado por una acidez refrescante y por un núcleo de fruta fresca. Los taninos se mantiene aún firmes. Tiene toda la parafernalia mullida propia de Vega Sicilia. Habrá que darle un mínimo de 15 años antes de abrirlo para disfrutarlo en plenitud. No sé si llegará a la altura del Único de 1960 o 1962 (me da a mi que no...). Hay buena materia prima pero no vale la pena darle matarile en este momento.
- - - Wine Info - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 80% tinto fino, 20% cabernet sauvignon - 13.5% vol. Acabado el proceso de fermentación permanece durante 2 años en tinos de madera de gran capacidad. Trasegado a barricas nuevas de roble de 225 litros en los que realiza una crianza de 16 meses. Nuevamente trasegado para continuar el proceso de maduración en barricas semi-nuevas durante 24 meses. 3 años más en barricas usadas hasta finalizar su largo periodo de crianza con una nueva permanencia de 3 años en tinos de madera de gran capacidad. El resto en botella hasta su comercialización a partir del año 2003. Producción limitada a 105.860 botellas, 2.632 magnum y 150 doble magnum. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
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Decanted 5 hours. Brooding black-purple semi translucent colour with heavy legs on the side of the glass. Nose is deep-ground black slab of 'light absorption' like in 2001 Space Odyssey....still so closed but brilliantly linear. It might open a crevice more in the next 20 years. Palate is OMG beautiful.....enormous depth of fully mature plums red and black. Black coal. Still closed and young despite the advanced nature of the initial fruit. Wonderful resonant and reverberative length that goes on for minutes. Hard to guage....I would say it's 20 years off its potential best. Thrilling.....the first from a case Greg and I bought together a couple of years ago from the winery.
@ Sampler Tasting 04/2014 - aged in 50% French/50% American new oak! then used barrels and then large vats for a total of 6-8 years. Finally 3 years in bottle prior to release. Delicate cedar and some vegetative notes. Savoury. Lovely. Palate feels balanced. Ready to drink but still more to go.
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A tight nose of dark fruit, herbs, olives and leather. More red fruit on the palate. This was tight and after 3 hours in the decanter had not moved much. Wonderful balance and seamless texture, but not giving up much. Clearly this needs more time.
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I would have quite confidently, and incorrectly, pegged this as Northern Rhone blind. Intense nose of black olive, deep dark fruits, and peppercorn, with a paprika note that added complexity and lift. In the mouth this was medium-bodied with plenty of structure left, though fairly well-disguised--the acid doesn't begin to bite until past the midpalate, and the tannin hides until the finish. Extremely dense and tightly wound, this needs far more time in the cellar to unravel and delineate its flavors. I can't stand olives, either the real kind or olive tastes in wine, so I didn't enjoy this as much as my drinking companion or the others I shared a previous bottle with a few months ago. But objectively, this is a well-made wine with a great future ahead of it.
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Vega Sicilia Unicos + more (The Modern): Incredibly young for a 24-year-old wine. Intense black fruit, some tobaccoey/cigar notes, hints of well-integrated oak. The fruit very concentrated and still sweet and primary, and there's lots of structure and acid here holding it together. Tremendous wine that will last for decades.
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Your Thoughts On ... Vega-Sicilia (Rotterdam): Complex nose of leather, truffle, mushroom and blackfruit. On the palate plenty of secondary flavours, quite acidic with great freshness and elegance. Very long finish. Still very lively thanks to its good acidity!
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Brown Bag Wine Dinner at Two Chefs; 3/19/2013-3/20/2013 (TWO CHEFS, MIAMI, FL): The wine looks Garnet colored. The legs are Slow. It smells like Black currant (cassis), Blackberry, Mineral, Vanilla, and Violet. The body is Medium/Full. The wine has Satin-like texture. The wine finishes Long. Luis's wine. I IDed it as Ribera del Duero, and knowing it Luis' wine, guessed Vega Sicilia Unico. THANK YOU LUIS FORSHARING YOUR BOUNTY WITH US!
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2012 - Lunch and Midnight drink (Chinois @ RWS, Sentosa): Alcohol :: 14% Vibrant dark ruby core with light rim. It was less expressive and quite acidic when popped and poured. However, after 2hrs of air in the bottle and additional 1.5hrs in the decanter, it fully blossoms. Smoke, pain grille, mushroom, sweet dark plum, blackcurrant and berry, perfumed lavender in the background with mild spice box. I'm surprise this wasn't muscular or tannic, it is delicate with lots of intensity but never too powerful nor tannic, showing great sense of harmonious and elegance. Tannin is there but well integrated with great freshness. Seamless on the palate with long finished lingering with plummy aftertaste. This will drink well for at least another decade.
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incredible balance in the wine with terrific finish that cleansed the palette and wonderful mouthfeel from start to finish; real freshness in the wine with plenty of secondary flavours and aromas starting to appear dried dark fruits, underbrush, and some meaty overtones but what amazing elegance; I am a burg fan but felt right at home this beauty
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A cornucopia of spices, black cherry, blackberry, flowers, molasses and red fruits easily made their way to your nose. Powerful, rich and concentrated, this fresh, opulent, round wine offered a rare blend of grace, purity and elegance. Vega Sicilia once again proves why it's one of the world's great wines.
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Decanted over 2 hours.Rather vibrant nose with dark fruit and berries and a hint of spices.Amazingly youthful palate.Medium+ bodied,dense dark fruit,blackberries,some cassis,smooth and firm tannins.Long finish.While sipping it was just hard to believe the age of the wine.After 3-4 hours airing it started to show a little more funky notes.Very delicious indeed.Well,it was not cheap either.
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Have not opened an 89 Unico for years, and this did not disappoint. It starts out tauntingly, with what seems like a touch of VA, and then simply grows better and better. A stunner, that would be easy to overlook based on the first glass out of the bottle.
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I normally don't score points anymore, but wanted to do so for this wine because it was one of the best wines I have had in the last year. We opened the wine and it slowe ox'ed for about 1 hour before consumption. In all honesty, this wine MUST be decanted if you want fullest enjoyment. I think 1 - 2 hours in a decanted would have been perfect. The nose was explosive, full of fruit and enveloped all your senses. I was like wow, this is going to be good. The first couple of tastes was tannic, I had to let it air in the glass a bit, the wine came around and it was sensational. Nice structure, good backbone, hardly showing the actual age of this bottle. The wine changes in the glass, some like that, for me though, the third and fourth glass was the best. It demonstrates this wine can live 40 years or more. The palate was coated with the onslaught of this wine as you lick your chops because it tastes so good, the finish was one of the longest I have ever experienced in a wine. I stopped counting at 49 seconds because I refused to believe I was still tasting the finish. The wine just lingers in your mouth. This is an extraordinary wine and thus gave it points to demonstrate my pleasure of this wonderful wine. My first Vega-Sicilia, but definitely not the last, I will seek this out.
The wine was changing with every new pour, and tasting this transformation was a treat in itself. Very long finish, color and zest of a much younger wine. I'd buy it again and again and again!
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Lively and fresh looking even after 21 years of age. Ruby colour and a garnet rim. Restrained but elegant and beautifully poised. Although it comes from a hot vintage it is still a youthful wine, an outstanding balance of fruit, minerality and spices. Elegant yet powerful with a great balance. The aftertaste is lingering long.
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An incredible bottle of wine. We popped this one early and followed it's development in the glass and the decanter. My summary of this wine - I can't believe it's 21 years old. This drank very, very young. Secondary development is not particularly obvious to me on either the nose or palate. On the nose, meat and game surrounding rich Spanish fruit. On the palate, rich and vivacious. Lush in mouthfeel, but a lot of bold structure, most obvious the tannins that are still quite present. With two bottles still in the cellar, I will wait 5-10 years before the next one.
At this point in its life, it is probably not worth it's premium pricing. But given the potential life span this wine has, that equation could change dramatically over the next 10-20 years.
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Glorious wine of plums and earth. Highly structured, still tannic, many years of life ahead of it. Drinks much younger than the '91, this one should sleep longer and drink the '91's now.
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Plum dominates, a bit of anise, very good grip and length. This would be very much at home in a first growth left bank tasting. No rush to drink this, I suspect the tannins will continue to soften and there's still a lot of fruit; nevertheless, it is quite good now.
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French Bakery BYO Ribera del Duero Wine Dinner; 2/25/2009-2/26/2009 (The French Bakery, 1023 Kane Concourse, Bay Harbor Islands, Florida): Craig's wine 2/26. 3-1/2 1sts of 10, Ave 90.0. Jerry WOTF, 92- dark cherry. Jason(split w Pesquera), 90- New school; young; jammy; big ripe rich mouthfeel; kirsch; fresh at finish. Kiki WOTF, 90. John WOTF, 89. Mark(me), 91- Tight nose, very good. Charlie, 91- muscular, almost New World. David, 90- young, thin, need to taste again in 1 hour. Craig, 89- Oak, cherry, young, ripe, not complex, but easy to enjoy, linger. Henry,87- Young, higher alcohol. Roberta last preference. Again the Unico was stylisitically different than the others in this flight, and apparently was still youthful and relatively closed at 20 years of age. I had only previously tasted Unico at a Sunset Corner's sponsored Vega Sicilia dinner at La Dorade in Coral Gables, perhaps 6 years ago. While I liked this wine,I have yet to develop an appreciation for this highly acclaimed and EXPENSIVE wine.
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Vega-Sicilia (A Figueira Rubaiyat): Vinho #01. Provado às cegas. Rubi escuro, cor de vinho novo, só denuncia alguma evolução pelo halo aquoso com pouquíssimos traços atijolados. Vivo, elegante, fino, taninos suaves. Notas resinosas contidas, evoluíndo para aromas discretos de couro. Menos exuberante que os demais, porém longo em boca e com ótima profundidade aromática. Excepcional. Meu palpite: Único 89.
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Showed even better than a bottle opened 6 months ago, more bright red fruit above the weighty, earthy base. Tasted alongside '89 Lafite, and this was equal in quality, just stylistically different -- some preferred the Unico above Lafite. A memorable wine. A-
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Drank from the glass at Cork Kitchen Cellar - just had to try this when I saw it on the menu. This is wine the way I like it, serious, aristocratic, very challenging, superbly made. Powerful, bold and masculine, yet rich, complex and superbly balanced. It was a joy to drink.
The wine had developed into a garnet tone, with an orangey rim showing its age. The nose was absolutely stunning. Damp mossy stone and bramble at first blush, then slowly opening up to peppery spices and then deep, dark fruits - the darkest of cherries and ripe blackberries - all this wreathed in wafts of tobacco and dried, toasty American oak. The bouquet was so beautiful and complex that I was happy just sniffing it, but one has to move on to the drinking! Drying tannins at the tip of the tongue, unfolded into a really focused palate of dark cherries and berries interwoven with the tightest little notes of vanilla. At the back of the mouth, a flush of warmth, and a focused, persistent and absolutely elegant finish of dried raisins, spice, tobacco all lingering softly in the mouth for the longest time.
I must also put in a note about the absolutely brilliant structure of this wine. Probably the best I have ever tasted - almost sculpted in its fineness. It was a beautifully built wine, rather firm and very grippy, but with incredibly fine tannins. Nice acid support kept the wine fresh, but never made itself overly noticed. This is one of the rare wines were the structure itself is arresting and brilliant, leaving you wanting more. This is what makes the Unico a great wine for me. Almost two decades old, this particular bottle could have easily gone on for several decades or more.
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I found this dense and tight, showing pine and green wood before starting to open up. Unfortunately I didn't have a chance to write any further notes. I can just say that it wasn't showing as well as it was two months ago at the HDH Vega Sicilia Master Class. I suspect that they had decanted the wine for quite a long time before serving it.
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Beautiful nose. You know that this has the right stuff and that it should be an "expensive" bottle but I honestly was really let down by the experience. I simply dont believe that this was $150 better than a solid $50 spanish red. Seemed thin and a bit tart.
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Nose was closed at first, opened over a couple of hours with leather, tobacco, and graphite coming through. However, the finish was looooong from the first sip. Lots of red fruits, bright, lots of life left in it. If you open now, I suggest decanting at least 2 hours. Will last at least another decade.
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Dark garnet color with just a touch of fading at the edge. Big explosive nose of black fruit, coffee, leather, and iron. Soft on the palate with moderate tannins.
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Kitchen Tasting Group Does Beaver Creek – Day One: Probably consensus WOTF by the group. Another lovely example of Unico. For me the fruit was much darker here, and pushed sur maturite. I can handle brett, but don't love anything approaching roasted fruit. So while this is a superstar wine that was widely praised, I found the 87 to be a bit more to my taste.
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Per Se - Really fantastic. My kind of wine. Big (but not too big), sweet (but not too sweet). Lovely. Had the 87 this week. Don't know which I liked more. Fantastic. Should it have been paired with the 90 Lynch Bages? I don't think so. Much too fruity for the LB.
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Garrafa aberta por 3 horas e posteriormente decantado por 1 hora. Ruby medio e brilhante. Aroma focado destacando mineral e couro. Na boca medio corpo, leve austeridade, secura, com boa fruta, ótima acidez e impressionante quantidade de taninos. Muita estrutura, equilibrio, finesse e elegancia. Tudo isso num corpo sedoso e com bastante persistencia. Excepcional.
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Tried a bottle. Certainly a great wine in the European mold, but wasn't (shamefully) what we were tuned in for. This is a medium bodied, elegant wine that will certainly develop thick nuances over time but was understated to our palates.
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Vega Vertical at the Post House-most likely by itself it would have been a special very enjoyable wine. But in its company of the 70 and 81 which were off the charts fantastic with long long finish soft silky tannins and great fruit. It wasn't all that.
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An Evening of Vega Sicilia Unico. (Post House.): Hmmm. This bottle isn't quite showing like the last one I had which was pretty rich, well-fruited with good promise. There's still ripe black fruit here, but it quickly turned tutti frutti-like. A touch of cocoa, but it soon developed herbal flavors which weren't there last time. It's a bit muddled on the palate. Fairly lifeless, yet also a little racy with a touch of sluttiness. Not in the best place right now. Needs a little of Professor Henry Higgin's help to turn it into a refined beauty. The material is there, the wine just doesn't know what to do with itself at this time. B+/B.
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Vega-Sicilia Único - vertical (81-94): Rubi mais aberto, límpido e brilhante. Menos intenso que os anteriores, mas elegantíssimo. Leve oxidação, extremamente seco. Refinado e mais evoluído. Os dois anos de diferença em relação ao 91 são insuficientes para explicar a diferença de evolução entre eles. Maior acidez, porém equilibrado, fino, sedoso, o mais agradável de se beber agora -- e sem apresentar sinais de fadiga. Informações do site da VS: 80%T+20%CS. 100.000 botellas bordelesas y 2.500 Magnum y 110 Jeroboams. Acabado el proceso de fermentación permaneció 2 años en tinos de madera de gran capacidad. Recibió una crianza de 16 meses en barricas nuevas, 3 años en semi-nuevas, 3 en usadas para finalizar 3 años en tino de madera de gran capacidad. El resto en botella hasta su comercialización.
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Surreal...my first experience with this mythical wine. The legends were true -- overwhelming combination of vanilla and cedar on the nose. Beautiful deep red lightening at the edges, like a Cote d'Nuits in its prime. And the flavors -- incredibly complex, earth, berries; a beautiful harmonization of fruit and terroir. I purchased Riedel Rioja stems for this wine and I'm glad I did. A joy. Note to self: find more!!!
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Incredibly youthful appearance; fabulous bouquet, blackcurrants, plums, lead, minerals, deep and rich, spicy oak perfectly absorbed, wonderfully mature but full of promise; very concentrated, velvety texture, impeccable balance, creamy, round and rich, tannins completely covered in flesh, lively; outstanding length with the finish showing some oak. A magnificent wine, not unlike a great Château Latour.
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Tasting at Wine and Cheese Show - The highlights: Well, this is the first time I have had Vega Unico, and this 89 was unbelievable. The vanilla oak nose with red fruit was just unreal, it was soo clean and you got it a mile away. Elegance personified, it just went down, and I do not even remember drinking it. Clearly it outclassed everything else I tasted today. This really reminded me of great fruity red bordeaux. Wow, I was speachless... got to get some of this, I just shudder at the price.
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Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot. Medium-garnet colour. Aromas of barnyard, cherry, spice, lavender, vanilla, lead pencil. Full-bodied, outstanding wine with spice, cherry, earth, dried flowers, currant. Long, long finish, 60+ seconds, with red fruit. Would like to try again in 15 years.
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Kensington Wine Tasting, Before and During Auction (The Pump Room - Chicago IL): Wine tasting. Tasted three times over a couple of hours, this wine kept changing in interesting ways. Red cherry and boysenberry aromas with great floral, tobacco and cedar elements also coming through at various times on the nose. Dense, massive red and black fruit with great spice and minerality. Great length, this wine just demands your attention. Still years away from its peak, I'd like to revisit this wine every five years for the next three decades.
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Vega-Sicilia library wines with proprieters and Michael Broadbent (Christies NYC): The 1989 Unico is 80% Temperanillo based and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon based and boasting a wonderful clean nose of bright red fruit. Color is ruby red with great clarity. Once again there is an almost black chocolate flavor and my nose is telling my palate this wine is going to taste delicious. It's sweet in the mouth and a big wine but with clean and elegant lines. Harmony, balanced some more time to pull everything together is still needed. This is a winner and I intended on putting some away for a rainy day. yumm..
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Vega Sicilia Masterclass with Xavier Ausas (London): 80% tempranillo, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. Two years in large oak vats; 16 months in a mix of US and French oak new barrels, 3 years in a mix of new and old barrels, three in used barrels and a final three years back in large oak vats.
Slightly more mature than the 1991, but hardly noticeable. Even and dark. A very complex leathery, brambly nose with a certain gaminess and a blackcurrant-chocolately sweetness. Nice use of oak. Very elegant. Light fruit initially complemented by excellent tannins and building in the mouth. Very well balanced and really well integrated.
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Fabulous nose. Soft subtle hedgerow fruits with leathery notes, a roast pork meaty smokiness and a touch of spirit. Some fruit initially. Nice elegant structure. Very fine and elegant despite its evident youth. Good tannic structure and excellent balance. Has decades ahead of it.
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5/1/2024 - Juliansi Likes this wine: 94 Points
This 1989 Unico is a blend of 80% Tinto Fino and 20% Cab Sauv, picked early from 30th September. Receives 3 years in barrel and 2 years in bottle prior to release.
Question with Unico is always, what is the ideal preparation? Some do a full large flask decant for five hours of air, others simply bottle-breathe for 12 or more hours.
Seductive nose with florality and deeper earthy notes, including coffee.
Dark ruby-colored with a complex nose, and certainly shows that this can age another 5-20 years. Unico is nothing but legendary with age.
Gorgeous, minty bouquet with blackberry and crushed violet flowers too. Interesting hints of strawberry jam as it develops.
Develops nicely with gentle aeration in the glass.
Palate is silky smooth, with such purity of fruit - Develops weight towards the finish, What a treat to have one of the 105,860 bottles produced.
Lastly, this is a monumental wine with such memorable aromatics, and that divine textured and layered mouthfeel.
Super generous of LMC for sharing this on the occasion of bro RN's birthday celebration, with the theme "First Growth Specials".
Stoked, KL, Malaysia
1st May 2024
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1/22/2024 - Henman Likes this wine: 92 Points
At Rare wine dinner (Muru). Funky and red fruity notes on the nose. Medium bodied, smooth and silky, showing subtle mellow red fruit with umami/funky notes and smooth and almost resolved tannins. This was nicely developed.
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8/13/2023 - BradE wrote:
Another good vs great bottle of the 89 Unico. (It can be great.)
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3/31/2023 - melvinyeowq wrote: 96 Points
Beat the '90 Latour: My contribution. Echoing what PCLIN said, I never had a Unico that moved me but I put the bottle in the capable hands of Dibbs who gave it the ideal preparation, i.e. five hours of air, for it to show wonderfully.
This was the first wine served and it was roaring from the start. Incredibly seductive nose that rivalled the best Burgs or Piedmont - so lifted and floral at the same time with a distinct roasted coffee note. Such a youthful palate that it could have passed off as a wine half its age, silky and pure dark red fruits but with a firm backbone. I value the nose and texture as the most important characteristics in wines and this scored full marks for both in my book. Did fade slightly towards the end of dinner though. Brilliant wine.
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3/31/2023 - Dibbs Likes this wine: 97 Points
Beat the 1990 Latour: Group’s and my WOTN. We had two Unico skeptics in the group and by the end of the night, we had two new converts. The 89 is drinking absolutely beautifully with a flirty Burgundian elegance. What it might lack in concentration vs the Latour it more than made up with its finesse and an absolute knockout of a nose. With higher acidity than the Bordeaux’s, more red fruited and sexy, it defies classification and stands as a truly singular wine that delivers year after year.
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3/31/2023 - pclin wrote: 96 Points
Single blind. Co WOTN with ‘90 Latour. This had the most explosive nose of all the wines tonight, I confidently guessed Dujac CldR without taking a sip initially, lol. Had never been moved by any Unico previously despite many encounters, this was a first. Good length and depth with years to go. Great showing tonight.
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3/31/2023 - pavel_p Likes this wine: 93 Points
Beat the 1990 Latour: Garnet with bricking towards the rim. A bit of a roasted quality on the nose. Initially fairly tannic and not very aromatic but opened up later with more air. Very bright aromatically indeed then. Clearly still a long life ahead. The favorite at the table and while I liked it it did not really speak to me that night.
Had this initially as the 88 Mouton given the tannins and muted aromatics, then the 90 Latour as the wine opened up, and only decided on Unico after revisiting later when it became clear that this was no Bordeaux.
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3/1/2023 - Burgundy Al wrote:
Pre-Paulee Warm-up Dinner (House of Nanda - Chicago IL): Alongside 1990. All black fruited, lots here, but clearly still brooding. Impressive weight and density tells me how great this wine can/will be, but tonight it was slightly less expressive than previous bottles, even with some decanter time. 93 points tonight, 94-95 points in the future.
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3/1/2023 - Nanda wrote: 95 Points
Pre La Paulée Dinner with friends (Home): 89-90 side-by-side. Decanted for 2-3 hours. A sensational wine and oh so young. Packed with pure, seamless fruit and matched with a elegant but still present structure. At peak and should hold for a long time.
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3/1/2023 - KenK Likes this wine: 96 Points
In a great spot and drinking really well. Still showing nice dark fruit, damp soil, and grilling spices that are well integrated. Wonderfully balanced by the structure. Cork was nearly perfect with no signs of any seepage.
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12/27/2022 - Nontaco Likes this wine: 96 Points
Boxing Day dinner at the Royal Crescent. Finally an Unico with some real bottle age, and such a difference compared to younger bottles. Tertiary characteristics but still very much alive with some enjoyable spice elements that distinguish it (but only so slightly) from an aged Bordeaux.
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9/6/2022 - beatles wrote: 97 Points
My, my ... is good, has really opened. So much fruit here, sweet and local, spicy, chalky, vertical.
#El Cellar de Can Rocca #JubileTasting
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5/25/2022 - Goldstone Likes this wine: 96 Points
Dinner with Greg & Sayo (Clarence, 25/F H-Code, 45 Pottinger Street, Hong Kong): From Greg, from a case of 12 he and I bought on release. Decanded too briefly for 2+ hours on arrival at the restaurant but saved for another 2 hours (I last decanted a bottle for 8 hours last week which seemed better). That said the wine just 'sang' from first pour. Incredibly linear and 'Alice Down the Rabbit Hole' from first impact on the nose through to the ridiculously long reverberant and resonant finale on the final swallow. This has a lean elegance that requires a bit of experience to truly appreciate....and it has only just entered it drinking window, so give it another 10+ years to appeal to a wider hedonistic audience. Wow...this is a very high score on my scale.
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5/4/2022 - peternelson wrote: flawed
Corked. Dirty Dozen TOC dinner at Paella
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3/29/2022 - Goldstone Likes this wine: 96 Points
Second of a case bought on release and opened for a special birthday lunch with a mate I knew would really appreciate it. Decanted for c5 hours then re-bottled overnight. Semi translucent bur deep jeweled ruby core. Nose is still quite tightly coiled and reticent but showing enormous depth and purity of ‘fossilised’ black and red berry fruits. Anthracite. Palate shows lovely angular poise, very high cheek-boned and pure intense black cherry and blackcurrant reduction. Wow… is this resonant or what? Massive BLAM! Oh gosh, I’m going into reveries…. and will only improve as it opens up more in the coming 10-15 years. 96-97 for now.
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7/31/2020 - Tudz Drkl Likes this wine: 95 Points
Fantastic! Still fresh and well structured. Intense and nuanced at the same time. From another dimension.
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7/31/2020 - RayOB Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drank at Home
Absolutely singing, beautiful complex and deep. Wow
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7/12/2020 - WildeMeeuw Likes this wine: 97 Points
Kleur: Robijnrood met een oranjebruine verkleuring aan de rand. Aroma / bouquet: Wow, een briljant en elegant bouquet met accenten van cederhout, leer, kersencompote en gedroogde pruimen. En geen spoor van tè-tertiaire aroma's als maggi of madeira. Deze wijn is 31 jaar oud en nog steeds alive-and-kickin'. Smaak / Afdronk: Ik heb zelden een zo belegen wijn in mijn glas gehad met een concentratie en balans als deze 1989 Vega. Verfijnd maar krachtig met een mooie balans tussen mondvullende zuren, tannines en alcohol. Serieus lange afdronk. Algemeen / potentieel: Ik beschouw mezelf als vineus gerontofiel in regressie. Wijnen konden me niet voldoende belegen zijn. Ik begin inmiddels terug te komen op dat standpunt. Maar voor Vega Sicilia maak ik graag een uitzondering…. Wat een extreme klassewijn….. 50 + Kleur: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 14 + Smaak / Afdronk: 19 + Algemeen / potentieel: 9 = 97/100
Color: Ruby red with an orange-brown discoloration on the edge. Aroma / bouquet: Wow, a brilliant and elegant bouquet with accents of cedar wood, leather, cherry compote and prunes. And no trace of tertiary aromas such as maggi or madeira. This wine is 31 years old and still alive and kickin '. Taste / Finish: I have seldom had such a matured wine in my glass with a concentration and balance as this 1989 Vega. Refined but powerful with a nice balance between mouth-filling acids, tannins and alcohol. Seriously long aftertaste. General / potential: I consider myself vineus gerontophile-in-regression. Wines could not be sufficiently mature. I am now starting to return to that position. But I would like to make an exception for Vega Sicilia…. What an extreme class wine… .. 50 + Color: 5 + Aroma / bouquet: 14 + Taste / Finish: 19 + General / potential: 9 = 97/100
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2/19/2020 - nywine68 wrote: 93 Points
Vega Sicilia Unico Vertical 1953-1994 (Hosted by Cedric at Eleven Madison Park): Another young, ripe full-bodied version with more black than red fruit. This has 80% Tempranillo in the blend. Next to the 1985 this has a bit less depth and length.
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12/21/2019 - MattMauldin Likes this wine: 97 Points
Decades of Decadence - "The 9's" (Buellton, CA): Aromas of worn cedar, leather, cassis, sawdust, earth and mushroom. Silky and seamless palate and just expands and broadens as it goes. Very secondary but plenty of fruit, huge middle with great depth. Very finely structured with big depth on the finish. Broad and massive, but with stately elegance and grace. Showing beautifully.
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12/19/2019 - JonnyG Likes this wine: 97 Points
Decades of Decadence -- the '9' Edition (Our Favorite Spot in Buellton, CA): An outstanding Unico, drinking at peak. Savory and smoky layers of sweet baked fruit, cedar and anise, with a density of flavors that still managed to come off as spry and energetic. Tremendously long and expansive finish.
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12/7/2019 - Nipperu Likes this wine: 98 Points
Clear med ruby
Black fruit: blackcurrant, cherries
Cured meat, leather
Underbrush
Edit: after 15 mins the nose is much more developed, dried fruit - cherries, cranberries; fully-integrated vanilla/oak
Dry
Fruit more advanced on the palate - mix of fresh and dried fruit, prunes?
Long finish
High tannins
Med acid
Med body
Med- alcohol (12.5% tasted vs 13.5% actual)
Finish for days. Super good.
"It tastes good. IT TASTES GOOD!"
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11/9/2019 - NoTrollingerPlease Likes this wine: 95 Points
Best bottle (Restaurant Holz und Feuer, Kirchheim, Germany): Glass: Gabriel Standard
Popped and poured, not decanted. Clear, deep tawny color. Clean, pronounced and amazingly complex nose. Very deep, herbaceous, menthol, red fruit, espresso, leather.
On the palate very elegant and balanced. Some extract sweetness. Wonderful ripe acidity. 13,5%. Fine grained tannin. Amazing length! Still very young with a bright and shiny future. It will certainly continue to develop for at least another decade. 95-97
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10/26/2019 - canan wrote: 95 Points
BYO - Rasmus: Very impressive but simply WAY to young. Never really opens up!
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4/23/2019 - Nanda wrote: 95 Points
What a gorgeously youthful Unico. Chock full of red fruit with spice from fruit and oak, and a clear, well-integrated American Oak element. It's pretty hard to believe this is a 30 year old wine, as it's still so primary and fresh. Give it another 10 years -- upside from here.
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4/23/2019 - salil wrote: 96 Points
Dinner at Nico Osteria: Well this is a fireworks display. Still remarkably youthful and barely showing any of its 30 years of age - the fruit here still seems very primary and youthful, augmented nicely by the oak, and showing more savoury earthy and smoky notes on the back end. There's striking power and intensity on the palate here, but it also feels remarkably polished and graceful for such a big, intense wine - there's really bright acidity keeping it very fresh, and a remarkably long finish.
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4/23/2019 - acyso wrote: 95 Points
Dinner at Nico Osteria (Chicago, IL): Wow, if this is what you mean by fruit and (American) oak bomb, then I'm totally on board with that concept. What an absolutely insane wine -- a huge array of black and red fruits, bolstered by that green dill element of the oak. This is a full-throttle, intense wine, with an inky black complexion. There's still so much fruit here that needs to resolve; in fact, I suspect with the appropriate amount of time this may well surpass the brilliant 1982 (which I had a week or two ago). I'll also add, that despite all the ripe fruit and sweetness and (correctly done) jamminess, this wine still has a huge streak of acidity running through it, which brightens that dark complexion considerably.
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1/27/2019 - BradE wrote:
Two bottles of 1989, first of a case. Drank well, but "good" versus Unico's typical greatness. Maybe the case vs the vintage.
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1/1/2019 - AWBryce wrote: 97 Points
Excellent nose, reminiscent of a right bank bordeaux. Resolved, great balance, ripe blue fruits, baking spices, mint. Long finish. Fantastic.
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12/8/2018 - Évergète wrote: 92 Points
Dégusté après une série de Bordeaux il est apparu plein, mûr et concentré sur de très jolis arômes de fruits noirs. Beau vin.
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11/30/2018 - robmatic wrote: 95 Points
Wow, I didn't even write any notes about this as I was drinking it, don't know how that happened. Think I was just enjoying the wine, which was seamless and pure, full of life and depth. Lovely.
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11/29/2018 - Tony Ling Likes this wine: 94 Points
PNP into Zalto Burgundy glass (“Fruit” day): Medium ruby with bricking rims.
Top flight aged Bordeaux nose - Mature red fruits infused with florals, dried herbs and soy-like notes. Some very nice dried leafy notes too - Very enticing and classic.
Very good acidity and tannin structure at this stage but can drink now.
94 points.
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8/4/2018 - ricknat1 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Truly excellent. Let breathe for an hour. Decanted and it was big, smooth and delicious. After an hour the tannins started to reassert themselves. In short, very good now, but can only get better with time. If oyu drink it now, i would give it at least 3 hours decant unless you are going to drink within an hour.
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6/19/2018 - theriffraph Likes this wine: 98 Points
I think at 29 years young it’s in a wonderful spot. Pure elegance, beautiful red fruit, I’m basically speechless. Not much more I can say other than to those who have this will love it at this spot
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3/9/2018 - beatles wrote: 94 Points
this was in desperat need of air and got it, as the rest of the bottle spend the night in the decanter. It helped; the wine evolved and showed a classical Spanish presence, spicy, smokey, cool, very much a Vega S.
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2/12/2018 - reichken wrote: 94 Points
taste like a new release, dark dark color and black fruit smeel, fills the mouth, all primary, long long finish. young
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1/21/2018 - willfab60 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Started off thin and weak. After 45 minute decant was very good.Red and darker berries, hint of graphite . Wish I had more.Very enjoyable!
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11/16/2017 - RayOB wrote: 94 Points
Drank at 67
Dark brooding fruits with a silky smooth palate. lovely.
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10/25/2017 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted for 2 hours. Could have used less time. Probably 30 mins or less. Elegant sweet dark fruit, tobacco, ash, and licorice. Softened up with aeration. This is another bottle that is very expressive and elegant tonight like the 83.
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7/7/2017 - Blake Brown Likes this wine: 100 Points
1989 VEGA SICILIA UNICO GRAN RESERVA RIBERA del DUERO- released in 2003; 80% Tempranillo, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon; a perfect bottle; perfect balance, bright and righteous fruit profile, great silky texture, depth and complexity with layers upon layers unfolding and a long, welcomed finish; some of the flavours I got included spicy, earthy, tobacco, sandalwood accented red cherry fruit
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3/14/2017 - dream Likes this wine: 96 Points
A fabulous showing for this wine which is just turning the corner into drinkability. Has great intensity with delicious black fruits along with some smoky black cherry and tobacco. Great acidity which is in perfect balance with the very ripe fruit. Finishes gloriously intense and complex with notes of minerals, sweet red earth and an array of spices. Still quite young but it's so good now. At IB&WS dinner at Jungsik, NYC. 96+
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2/24/2017 - Fatty Cat wrote: 91 Points
Unico tasting (27 different vintages) at the Rheingau Gourmet Festival 2017: clear bordeaux red colour; while a smell revealed not much, upon drinking aromas like eucalyptus, violet, cherry and herbs (like the swiss ricola sweet) developed in the mouth; the wine had a medium acidity.
Vintages 1st flight: 1972-1980-1985-1987-1989
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9/16/2016 - JulianSkeels wrote: 93 Points
From a regular bottle, not from my cellar. A bottle I drank earlier this year showed far better. It should have needed only 20mins of air to show the rich beef stock and glycerin I love in the wine - but it just didn't come. Without that, the oak character wasn't balanced and the wine was strangely subdued with more nutty (read: tertiary) flavours. A good wine, with plenty of interest but not the great wine it should have been. More air didn't help. Good bottles are still improving and will last 20yrs, but this didn't seem to have much future - I expect it will just dry out. Maybe bottle variation at play? Need to ask the winery. Usually rate this 96pts, but this bottle... 92-93pts?
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4/23/2016 - SlimShaney wrote: 95 Points
Vegetable nose. Conscious effort to drink rather than drawn in.
Balaced texture. Opulent, but forcibly restrained. Given it's pre 90s -wow - this is super modern and youthful.
Super pleasurable also.
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3/31/2016 - ricknat1 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Dark fruit and cedar to the nose. Tobacco, chocolate, plums and herbs. Silky with great power, earthiness and a finish that was very long. Truly beautiful. Drinking well and may improve significantly over time. Had an edge over the 91 which was also gorgeous
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2/10/2016 - JulianSkeels Likes this wine: 96 Points
A strange initial smell (inc mild VA) took 20mins to blow off (from perfect bottle) to show a fantastic rich beef stock taste, aromatic fireworks, glycerin, balanced acid and fantastically rich and broad mouthfeel. A class act with lots of time left in the tank - at least 10yrs and I'm not even sure this has peaked! Need to buy this, which is incredibly drinkable, or the 1994. It still shows tonnes of oak, but it's so well balanced with the rich mouthfeel, savoury tastes and aromatic interest that it just... Works. Lovely with steak.
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12/15/2015 - steinersing wrote: 95 Points
Impressive
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8/29/2015 - petitblanc wrote: 93 Points
Madison Offline 2015; 8/27/2015-8/29/2015: Plainly showing its lineage with the other Unicos today, just a shade more oxidative but overall a nice showing.
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8/29/2015 - GalvezGuy Likes this wine: 95 Points
Throwndown in Madtown; 8/27/2015-8/29/2015 (Madison, WI): Single blind. Nose of dark berries, dusty rose petals , cigar, and espresso. Palate repeats the nose with a lively finish and tons of acidity and tannic grip. This improved steadily throughout the tasting and by the end in was in the top four for me just behind the 60, the 90 Lafite and the 91. Would love to see this in about 20 years.
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8/28/2015 - BradE wrote:
Three Nights In San Juan; 8/27/2015-8/29/2015: The 89 is a terrific Unico, and this bottle was great.
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2/3/2015 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 93 Points
MWS Wine Tasting and Dinner (Restaurant De Burgemeester *, Linschoten, Netherlands): Old-fashioned, rich, quite oxidative nose, nutty, warm, concentrated and with more than a hint of hint of volatility, powerful but mature, rich tannins, not as impressive as I remember from my previous tasting in 2005 but a very solid, impressive Ribeira del Duero.
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12/17/2014 - Naplesgolfer Likes this wine: 96 Points
Decanted 3 hrs. Improved in the glass fro the 2 1/2 hrs of Dinner. Dark dried berries with dusty rose , cigar and coffee nose. A lot of acid to keep things lively and tells me 25 years more of life left. Crazy long finish. This is one of those rare wine that gets stronger and deeper hour after hour in the glass. will most likely merit a higher score in the future.
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12/7/2014 - Lord Rayas wrote: 89 Points
double decanted for a couple of hours. strangely subdued, especially drinking next to 89 conseillante. underlying fruit is there, but has it entered a shutdown phase?
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10/16/2014 - Los 12 Glotones Likes this wine: 94 Points
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Els12golafres Wine Tasting Group: http://vinosclasicos.blogspot.com.es/2014/10/vega-sicilia-unico-1989-magnum.html
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Botella abierta con antelación y aireado durante casi un par de horas sin decantar. Por experiencia estos magnums de VS suelen necesitar un poco más de tiempo para que se abran respecto a la botella de 75 cl. Corcho extraordinario, sin apenas estar manchado, completamente elástico. Ya podrían aprender otras bodegas... De color cereza granatoso de capa media-alta, oscuro, tapado, limpísimo, sin precipitados y con gran sensación de juventud. Casi mancha la copa. Reflejos rojizos y violáceos, anaranjados, brillante. Ribete diminuto, marronoso.
Sorprendente al comenzar a servirlo. Potente, directo, crudo, predominan los primarios por encima de todo: pétalos, jacinto, hibiscus, cerezas picotas y un montón de fruta roja en sazón. Este revolcón de juventud no está reñido con un conjunto que al ir respirando se muestra cada vez más elegante. Tostados de calidad, maderas de las buenas, un punto de cuero y rosas ajadas y popurrí de pimientas molidas de fondo. Lo que se ve es de gran calidad pero sin alcanzar el despliegue esperado. La sensación es que aún tiene que curtirse con más guarda en botella. Abierto prematuramente!!
En boca está más hecho. Pleno, maduro, redondo, sin asomo de aristas. Está templado por una acidez refrescante y por un núcleo de fruta fresca. Los taninos se mantiene aún firmes. Tiene toda la parafernalia mullida propia de Vega Sicilia. Habrá que darle un mínimo de 15 años antes de abrirlo para disfrutarlo en plenitud. No sé si llegará a la altura del Único de 1960 o 1962 (me da a mi que no...). Hay buena materia prima pero no vale la pena darle matarile en este momento.
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80% tinto fino, 20% cabernet sauvignon - 13.5% vol.
Acabado el proceso de fermentación permanece durante 2 años en tinos de madera de gran capacidad. Trasegado a barricas nuevas de roble de 225 litros en los que realiza una crianza de 16 meses. Nuevamente trasegado para continuar el proceso de maduración en barricas semi-nuevas durante 24 meses. 3 años más en barricas usadas hasta finalizar su largo periodo de crianza con una nueva permanencia de 3 años en tinos de madera de gran capacidad. El resto en botella hasta su comercialización a partir del año 2003. Producción limitada a 105.860 botellas, 2.632 magnum y 150 doble magnum.
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6/14/2014 - Goldstone Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted 5 hours. Brooding black-purple semi translucent colour with heavy legs on the side of the glass. Nose is deep-ground black slab of 'light absorption' like in 2001 Space Odyssey....still so closed but brilliantly linear. It might open a crevice more in the next 20 years. Palate is OMG beautiful.....enormous depth of fully mature plums red and black. Black coal. Still closed and young despite the advanced nature of the initial fruit. Wonderful resonant and reverberative length that goes on for minutes. Hard to guage....I would say it's 20 years off its potential best. Thrilling.....the first from a case Greg and I bought together a couple of years ago from the winery.
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4/12/2014 - rjonwine@gmail.com wrote: 97 Points
Bricking dark red violet color; mature, tart currant, tobacco, anise, dried berry, cigar box nose; delicious, youthful, rich, creamy textured, roasted black fruit, espresso, baked berry, anise, cocoa, dried berry palate; long finish (80% Tempranillo, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon)
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4/8/2014 - dustbuddy wrote:
@ Sampler Tasting 04/2014 - aged in 50% French/50% American new oak! then used barrels and then large vats for a total of 6-8 years. Finally 3 years in bottle prior to release. Delicate cedar and some vegetative notes. Savoury. Lovely. Palate feels balanced. Ready to drink but still more to go.
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4/4/2014 - jlgnml Likes this wine:
Drank in a flight of '59, '60, '62 and the '65. Delicious.
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2/28/2014 - Alex G. wrote: flawed
Had this wine many times in the past it's always been stellar. A corked bottle was bound to happen one day. So sad...
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2/10/2014 - johnh1001 wrote: 91 Points
A tight nose of dark fruit, herbs, olives and leather. More red fruit on the palate. This was tight and after 3 hours in the decanter had not moved much. Wonderful balance and seamless texture, but not giving up much. Clearly this needs more time.
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11/28/2013 - cooberp wrote: 90 Points
I would have quite confidently, and incorrectly, pegged this as Northern Rhone blind. Intense nose of black olive, deep dark fruits, and peppercorn, with a paprika note that added complexity and lift. In the mouth this was medium-bodied with plenty of structure left, though fairly well-disguised--the acid doesn't begin to bite until past the midpalate, and the tannin hides until the finish. Extremely dense and tightly wound, this needs far more time in the cellar to unravel and delineate its flavors. I can't stand olives, either the real kind or olive tastes in wine, so I didn't enjoy this as much as my drinking companion or the others I shared a previous bottle with a few months ago. But objectively, this is a well-made wine with a great future ahead of it.
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11/3/2013 - jhngo wrote:
I think was a bit corked.
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5/23/2013 - coremill wrote: 94 Points
Vega Sicilia Unicos + more (The Modern): Incredibly young for a 24-year-old wine. Intense black fruit, some tobaccoey/cigar notes, hints of well-integrated oak. The fruit very concentrated and still sweet and primary, and there's lots of structure and acid here holding it together. Tremendous wine that will last for decades.
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5/9/2013 - KGagnon wrote: 95 Points
Élégant , fin , très belle longueurs , nez assez bien défini . Sublime
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5/2/2013 - Barry Rothof wrote: 94 Points
Your Thoughts On ... Vega-Sicilia (Rotterdam): Complex nose of leather, truffle, mushroom and blackfruit. On the palate plenty of secondary flavours, quite acidic with great freshness and elegance. Very long finish. Still very lively thanks to its good acidity!
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3/30/2013 - larsmello Likes this wine: 95 Points
Beautiful wine, ready to drink but with can be kept for at least another 5 years. Complex, perfectly balanced.
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3/19/2013 - markellen.foodies@gmail.com Likes this wine: 94 Points
Brown Bag Wine Dinner at Two Chefs; 3/19/2013-3/20/2013 (TWO CHEFS, MIAMI, FL): The wine looks Garnet colored. The legs are Slow. It smells like Black currant (cassis), Blackberry, Mineral, Vanilla, and Violet. The body is Medium/Full. The wine has Satin-like texture. The wine finishes Long. Luis's wine. I IDed it as Ribera del Duero, and knowing it Luis' wine, guessed Vega Sicilia Unico. THANK YOU LUIS FORSHARING YOUR BOUNTY WITH US!
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12/21/2012 - jsebiri wrote:
very very good wine , this wine is very young surprisingly , really a nice surprise super wine
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11/24/2012 - dcwino wrote: 96 Points
Leroy, Unico, Rayas, Ravenau and etc (Washington DC): Red fruit, subtle but complex nose, medium concentration, seamless round silky palate. Drinking beautifully and much more ready than the 94.
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3/30/2012 - Sleepy Dave wrote: 93 Points
2012 - Lunch and Midnight drink (Chinois @ RWS, Sentosa): Alcohol :: 14%
Vibrant dark ruby core with light rim. It was less expressive and quite acidic when popped and poured. However, after 2hrs of air in the bottle and additional 1.5hrs in the decanter, it fully blossoms. Smoke, pain grille, mushroom, sweet dark plum, blackcurrant and berry, perfumed lavender in the background with mild spice box. I'm surprise this wasn't muscular or tannic, it is delicate with lots of intensity but never too powerful nor tannic, showing great sense of harmonious and elegance. Tannin is there but well integrated with great freshness. Seamless on the palate with long finished lingering with plummy aftertaste. This will drink well for at least another decade.
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9/29/2011 - drc wrote: 95 Points
incredible balance in the wine with terrific finish that cleansed the palette and wonderful mouthfeel from start to finish; real freshness in the wine with plenty of secondary flavours and aromas starting to appear dried dark fruits, underbrush, and some meaty overtones but what amazing elegance; I am a burg fan but felt right at home this beauty
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6/2/2011 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
A cornucopia of spices, black cherry, blackberry, flowers, molasses and red fruits easily made their way to your nose. Powerful, rich and concentrated, this fresh, opulent, round wine offered a rare blend of grace, purity and elegance. Vega Sicilia once again proves why it's one of the world's great wines.
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4/8/2011 - rjonwine@gmail.com wrote: 96 Points
WineGavel Pre-Auction Tasting: Latour, Único, Grange, d'Yquem (St. Regis Hotel, San Francisco, California): Bricked medium dark red violet color; rich, evocative, dried berry, mushroom, autumnal, woodsy, tart nose; youthful, rich, complex, dried berry, tart black fruit, berry palate with medium acidity; long finish 96+ points
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11/19/2010 - Henman wrote: 93 Points
Decanted over 2 hours.Rather vibrant nose with dark fruit and berries and a hint of spices.Amazingly youthful palate.Medium+ bodied,dense dark fruit,blackberries,some cassis,smooth and firm tannins.Long finish.While sipping it was just hard to believe the age of the wine.After 3-4 hours airing it started to show a little more funky notes.Very delicious indeed.Well,it was not cheap either.
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8/28/2010 - BradE wrote:
Have not opened an 89 Unico for years, and this did not disappoint. It starts out tauntingly, with what seems like a touch of VA, and then simply grows better and better. A stunner, that would be easy to overlook based on the first glass out of the bottle.
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6/25/2010 - wallstreet wrote: 97 Points
I normally don't score points anymore, but wanted to do so for this wine because it was one of the best wines I have had in the last year. We opened the wine and it slowe ox'ed for about 1 hour before consumption. In all honesty, this wine MUST be decanted if you want fullest enjoyment. I think 1 - 2 hours in a decanted would have been perfect. The nose was explosive, full of fruit and enveloped all your senses. I was like wow, this is going to be good. The first couple of tastes was tannic, I had to let it air in the glass a bit, the wine came around and it was sensational. Nice structure, good backbone, hardly showing the actual age of this bottle. The wine changes in the glass, some like that, for me though, the third and fourth glass was the best. It demonstrates this wine can live 40 years or more. The palate was coated with the onslaught of this wine as you lick your chops because it tastes so good, the finish was one of the longest I have ever experienced in a wine. I stopped counting at 49 seconds because I refused to believe I was still tasting the finish. The wine just lingers in your mouth. This is an extraordinary wine and thus gave it points to demonstrate my pleasure of this wonderful wine. My first Vega-Sicilia, but definitely not the last, I will seek this out.
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6/25/2010 - Serge Birbrair wrote:
The wine was changing with every new pour, and tasting this transformation was a treat in itself.
Very long finish, color and zest of a much younger wine. I'd buy it again and again and again!
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3/7/2010 - Umay Ceviker wrote: 96 Points
Lively and fresh looking even after 21 years of age. Ruby colour and a garnet rim. Restrained but elegant and beautifully poised. Although it comes from a hot vintage it is still a youthful wine, an outstanding balance of fruit, minerality and spices. Elegant yet powerful with a great balance. The aftertaste is lingering long.
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3/6/2010 - vanpe003 wrote: 95 Points
An incredible bottle of wine. We popped this one early and followed it's development in the glass and the decanter. My summary of this wine - I can't believe it's 21 years old. This drank very, very young.
Secondary development is not particularly obvious to me on either the nose or palate. On the nose, meat and game surrounding rich Spanish fruit. On the palate, rich and vivacious. Lush in mouthfeel, but a lot of bold structure, most obvious the tannins that are still quite present. With two bottles still in the cellar, I will wait 5-10 years before the next one.
At this point in its life, it is probably not worth it's premium pricing. But given the potential life span this wine has, that equation could change dramatically over the next 10-20 years.
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1/23/2010 - Jossik wrote: flawed
Corked
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12/31/2009 - Alex G. wrote:
Glorious wine of plums and earth. Highly structured, still tannic, many years of life ahead of it. Drinks much younger than the '91, this one should sleep longer and drink the '91's now.
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10/21/2009 - Rupert wrote: 93 Points
Thirty vintages of Vega Sicilia Único 1953-1999; 10/20/2009-10/21/2009 (Institute of Directors, London): At first this seemed to be corked. Returning to it an hour or so later, the taint seemed to have gone and this was a brilliant spicy full throttle Unico - big and open.
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7/25/2009 - Alex G. wrote:
Plum dominates, a bit of anise, very good grip and length. This would be very much at home in a first growth left bank tasting. No rush to drink this, I suspect the tannins will continue to soften and there's still a lot of fruit; nevertheless, it is quite good now.
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2/26/2009 - markellen.foodies@gmail.com wrote: 90 Points
French Bakery BYO Ribera del Duero Wine Dinner; 2/25/2009-2/26/2009 (The French Bakery, 1023 Kane Concourse, Bay Harbor Islands, Florida): Craig's wine 2/26. 3-1/2 1sts of 10, Ave 90.0. Jerry WOTF, 92- dark cherry. Jason(split w Pesquera), 90- New school; young; jammy; big ripe rich mouthfeel; kirsch; fresh at finish. Kiki WOTF, 90. John WOTF, 89.
Mark(me), 91- Tight nose, very good. Charlie, 91- muscular, almost New World. David, 90- young, thin, need to taste again in 1 hour. Craig, 89- Oak, cherry, young, ripe, not complex, but easy to enjoy, linger. Henry,87- Young, higher alcohol. Roberta last preference.
Again the Unico was stylisitically different than the others in this flight, and apparently was still youthful and relatively closed at 20 years of age. I had only previously tasted Unico at a Sunset Corner's sponsored Vega Sicilia dinner at La Dorade in Coral Gables, perhaps 6 years ago. While I liked this wine,I have yet to develop an appreciation for this highly acclaimed and EXPENSIVE wine.
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9/11/2008 - Vinho wrote: 94 Points
Vega-Sicilia (A Figueira Rubaiyat): Vinho #01. Provado às cegas. Rubi escuro, cor de vinho novo, só denuncia alguma evolução pelo halo aquoso com pouquíssimos traços atijolados. Vivo, elegante, fino, taninos suaves. Notas resinosas contidas, evoluíndo para aromas discretos de couro. Menos exuberante que os demais, porém longo em boca e com ótima profundidade aromática. Excepcional. Meu palpite: Único 89.
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4/26/2008 - rjonwine@gmail.com wrote: 93 Points
Vega-Sicilia Unico Vertical and other Excesses (Chez Hazerot, Chez Hart and La Salette Restaurant, Sonoma, California): Vega Sicilia Unico vertical dinner: blackberry, black fruit and dill pickle (American oak) nose; tight, tart blackberry and black fruit palate with high acidity; medium-plus finish
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4/12/2008 - Alex G. wrote:
Showed even better than a bottle opened 6 months ago, more bright red fruit above the weighty, earthy base. Tasted alongside '89 Lafite, and this was equal in quality, just stylistically different -- some preferred the Unico above Lafite. A memorable wine. A-
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1/21/2008 - Paul S wrote: 95 Points
Drank from the glass at Cork Kitchen Cellar - just had to try this when I saw it on the menu. This is wine the way I like it, serious, aristocratic, very challenging, superbly made. Powerful, bold and masculine, yet rich, complex and superbly balanced. It was a joy to drink.
The wine had developed into a garnet tone, with an orangey rim showing its age. The nose was absolutely stunning. Damp mossy stone and bramble at first blush, then slowly opening up to peppery spices and then deep, dark fruits - the darkest of cherries and ripe blackberries - all this wreathed in wafts of tobacco and dried, toasty American oak. The bouquet was so beautiful and complex that I was happy just sniffing it, but one has to move on to the drinking! Drying tannins at the tip of the tongue, unfolded into a really focused palate of dark cherries and berries interwoven with the tightest little notes of vanilla. At the back of the mouth, a flush of warmth, and a focused, persistent and absolutely elegant finish of dried raisins, spice, tobacco all lingering softly in the mouth for the longest time.
I must also put in a note about the absolutely brilliant structure of this wine. Probably the best I have ever tasted - almost sculpted in its fineness. It was a beautifully built wine, rather firm and very grippy, but with incredibly fine tannins. Nice acid support kept the wine fresh, but never made itself overly noticed. This is one of the rare wines were the structure itself is arresting and brilliant, leaving you wanting more. This is what makes the Unico a great wine for me. Almost two decades old, this particular bottle could have easily gone on for several decades or more.
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12/14/2007 - robmatic wrote: 93 Points
I found this dense and tight, showing pine and green wood before starting to open up. Unfortunately I didn't have a chance to write any further notes. I can just say that it wasn't showing as well as it was two months ago at the HDH Vega Sicilia Master Class. I suspect that they had decanted the wine for quite a long time before serving it.
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11/15/2007 - vintage72 wrote: 90 Points
Beautiful nose. You know that this has the right stuff and that it should be an "expensive" bottle but I honestly was really let down by the experience. I simply dont believe that this was $150 better than a solid $50 spanish red. Seemed thin and a bit tart.
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11/11/2007 - Alex G. wrote:
Nose was closed at first, opened over a couple of hours with leather, tobacco, and graphite coming through. However, the finish was looooong from the first sip. Lots of red fruits, bright, lots of life left in it. If you open now, I suggest decanting at least 2 hours. Will last at least another decade.
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10/22/2007 - MatthewF wrote: 92 Points
Dark garnet color with just a touch of fading at the edge. Big explosive nose of black fruit, coffee, leather, and iron. Soft on the palate with moderate tannins.
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9/21/2007 - Dave Dalluge wrote:
Kitchen Tasting Group Does Beaver Creek – Day One: Probably consensus WOTF by the group. Another lovely example of Unico. For me the fruit was much darker here, and pushed sur maturite. I can handle brett, but don't love anything approaching roasted fruit. So while this is a superstar wine that was widely praised, I found the 87 to be a bit more to my taste.
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6/16/2007 - Cheryl wrote:
Per Se - Really fantastic. My kind of wine. Big (but not too big), sweet (but not too sweet). Lovely. Had the 87 this week. Don't know which I liked more. Fantastic. Should it have been paired with the 90 Lynch Bages? I don't think so. Much too fruity for the LB.
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6/1/2007 - losvinhos wrote: 94 Points
Garrafa aberta por 3 horas e posteriormente decantado por 1 hora. Ruby medio e brilhante. Aroma focado destacando mineral e couro. Na boca medio corpo, leve austeridade, secura, com boa fruta, ótima acidez e impressionante quantidade de taninos. Muita estrutura, equilibrio, finesse e elegancia. Tudo isso num corpo sedoso e com bastante persistencia. Excepcional.
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1/1/2007 - caldwell wrote:
Tried a bottle. Certainly a great wine in the European mold, but wasn't (shamefully) what we were tuned in for. This is a medium bodied, elegant wine that will certainly develop thick nuances over time but was understated to our palates.
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11/10/2006 - scamhi wrote:
Vega Vertical at the Post House-most likely by itself it would have been a special very enjoyable wine. But in its company of the 70 and 81 which were off the charts fantastic with long long finish soft silky tannins and great fruit. It wasn't all that.
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11/9/2006 - BradKNYC wrote:
An Evening of Vega Sicilia Unico. (Post House.): Hmmm. This bottle isn't quite showing like the last one I had which was pretty rich, well-fruited with good promise. There's still ripe black fruit here, but it quickly turned tutti frutti-like. A touch of cocoa, but it soon developed herbal flavors which weren't there last time. It's a bit muddled on the palate. Fairly lifeless, yet also a little racy with a touch of sluttiness. Not in the best place right now. Needs a little of Professor Henry Higgin's help to turn it into a refined beauty. The material is there, the wine just doesn't know what to do with itself at this time. B+/B.
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7/28/2006 - Vinho wrote: 94 Points
Vega-Sicilia Único - vertical (81-94): Rubi mais aberto, límpido e brilhante. Menos intenso que os anteriores, mas elegantíssimo. Leve oxidação, extremamente seco. Refinado e mais evoluído. Os dois anos de diferença em relação ao 91 são insuficientes para explicar a diferença de evolução entre eles. Maior acidez, porém equilibrado, fino, sedoso, o mais agradável de se beber agora -- e sem apresentar sinais de fadiga.
Informações do site da VS: 80%T+20%CS. 100.000 botellas bordelesas y 2.500 Magnum y 110 Jeroboams. Acabado el proceso de fermentación permaneció 2 años en tinos de madera de gran capacidad. Recibió una crianza de 16 meses en barricas nuevas, 3 años en semi-nuevas, 3 en usadas para finalizar 3 años en tino de madera de gran capacidad. El resto en botella hasta su comercialización.
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7/25/2006 - nvandyk wrote: 96 Points
Surreal...my first experience with this mythical wine. The legends were true -- overwhelming combination of vanilla and cedar on the nose. Beautiful deep red lightening at the edges, like a Cote d'Nuits in its prime. And the flavors -- incredibly complex, earth, berries; a beautiful harmonization of fruit and terroir. I purchased Riedel Rioja stems for this wine and I'm glad I did. A joy. Note to self: find more!!!
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11/21/2005 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 98 Points
Incredibly youthful appearance; fabulous bouquet, blackcurrants, plums, lead, minerals, deep and rich, spicy oak perfectly absorbed, wonderfully mature but full of promise; very concentrated, velvety texture, impeccable balance, creamy, round and rich, tannins completely covered in flesh, lively; outstanding length with the finish showing some oak. A magnificent wine, not unlike a great Château Latour.
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4/9/2005 - beachbum wrote: 97 Points
Tasting at Wine and Cheese Show - The highlights: Well, this is the first time I have had Vega Unico, and this 89 was unbelievable. The vanilla oak nose with red fruit was just unreal, it was soo clean and you got it a mile away. Elegance personified, it just went down, and I do not even remember drinking it. Clearly it outclassed everything else I tasted today. This really reminded me of great fruity red bordeaux. Wow, I was speachless... got to get some of this, I just shudder at the price.
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4/8/2005 - futronic wrote: 94 Points
Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot. Medium-garnet colour. Aromas of barnyard, cherry, spice, lavender, vanilla, lead pencil. Full-bodied, outstanding wine with spice, cherry, earth, dried flowers, currant. Long, long finish, 60+ seconds, with red fruit. Would like to try again in 15 years.
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12/11/2004 - Burgundy Al wrote: 95 Points
Kensington Wine Tasting, Before and During Auction (The Pump Room - Chicago IL): Wine tasting. Tasted three times over a couple of hours, this wine kept changing in interesting ways. Red cherry and boysenberry aromas with great floral, tobacco and cedar elements also coming through at various times on the nose. Dense, massive red and black fruit with great spice and minerality. Great length, this wine just demands your attention. Still years away from its peak, I'd like to revisit this wine every five years for the next three decades.
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11/30/2004 - jamiekutch wrote: 96 Points
Vega-Sicilia library wines with proprieters and Michael Broadbent (Christies NYC): The 1989 Unico is 80% Temperanillo based and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon based and boasting a wonderful clean nose of bright red fruit. Color is ruby red with great clarity. Once again there is an almost black chocolate flavor and my nose is telling my palate this wine is going to taste delicious. It's sweet in the mouth and a big wine but with clean and elegant lines. Harmony, balanced some more time to pull everything together is still needed. This is a winner and I intended on putting some away for a rainy day. yumm..
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11/22/2003 - andrewstevenson.com wrote: 95 Points
Vega Sicilia Masterclass with Xavier Ausas (London): 80% tempranillo, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. Two years in large oak vats; 16 months in a mix of US and French oak new barrels, 3 years in a mix of new and old barrels, three in used barrels and a final three years back in large oak vats.
Slightly more mature than the 1991, but hardly noticeable. Even and dark. A very complex leathery, brambly nose with a certain gaminess and a blackcurrant-chocolately sweetness. Nice use of oak. Very elegant. Light fruit initially complemented by excellent tannins and building in the mouth. Very well balanced and really well integrated.
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5/28/2003 - andrewstevenson.com wrote: 94 Points
Fabulous nose. Soft subtle hedgerow fruits with leathery notes, a roast pork meaty smokiness and a touch of spirit. Some fruit initially. Nice elegant structure. Very fine and elegant despite its evident youth. Good tannic structure and excellent balance. Has decades ahead of it.
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