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Reviews

98 -James Suckling -

98 -Wine Enthusiast -

98 -Decanter -

98 -Robert Parker's Wine Advocate -

97 -Guia Penin -

94 -Wine Spectator -

92 -Tom Cannavan -

Technical Details

  • Blend 87% Tempranillo, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon
  • Winemaker Javier Ausás
  • Country Spain
  • Region Castilla y León
  • Appellation Ribera del Duero
  • Vineyard Único is sourced from 40 select hectacres within the 240-ha Vega Sicilia estate vineyards
  • Farming Method Organic Practices
  • Oak 15 months in 20,000L oak vats, 25 months in new oak barrels, 17 months in older barrels, and a further 26 months in large oak vats
  • Fermentation Alcoholic and malolactic fermentation in large wooden vats
  • Aging / Cooperage Aged a minimum of 120 months; 83 months in oak, followed by a resting period in bottle before release
  • Alcohol 14%
  • Production 7,000 cases

Vega Sicilia Único Ribera del Duero 2004

Proprietary Blends | Castilla y León

JS98, WE98, DC98, WA98, GP97, WS94, TC92

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Organic Practices

$750.00

$449.00

750ML

40% OFF RETAIL!

Vega Sicilia was founded in 1864 and is widely regarded as Spain's first great fine wine estate – the property that put Ribera del Duero on the map decades before the region had any international recognition. Único is the estate's flagship, famously never released before a decade of aging in barrel and bottle, making it one of the most sought-after and collectible wines in the world. Allocations are minuscule, and older vintages rarely make the rounds.

The 2004 leans a touch more on Cabernet than usual – 87% Tempranillo and 13% Cabernet Sauvignon – showing prunes, roasted meat, cured black olives, ripe red fruit, and a hint of campfire smoke, opulent and velvety on the palate. It's often mentioned in the same breath as the legendary 1970 and 1994 vintages. Whew!

About The Producer

If there is a Grand Cru of Spain, it is Único, and the estate that produces it has been building that reputation for over 160 years. Don Eloy Lecanda y Chaves founded the estate in 1864 in Valbuena de Duero, returning from winemaking studies in Bordeaux with cuttings of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Malbec that he planted alongside the native Tinto Fino on his inherited Castilian land. By 1876 the estate was supplying the Spanish royal family. The first Único vintage was produced in 1915 under winemaker Domingo Garramiola Txomin, who brought Bordeaux cellar techniques including small-barrel aging to a wine that would go on to win awards at the 1929 World Fair in Barcelona. After passing through several owners across the 20th century, the estate was acquired in 1982 by the Álvarez family, arriving in the same year Ribera del Duero received its official DO status. Under the Álvarez family's stewardship, now led by President Marta Álvarez Mezquíriz, the estate has grown to approximately 1,000 hectares with 210 hectares of vines planted across 64 plots and 19 distinct soil types, with current winemaker Gonzalo Iturriega overseeing production. Único itself is a Gran Reserva of predominantly Tinto Fino with Cabernet Sauvignon, aged a minimum of 10 years between wood and bottle before release, and produced only in exceptional vintages. Around it, the Álvarez family has built the TEMPOS group, adding estates in Toro (Pintia), Tokaj (Oremus), and a partnership with Benjamin de Rothschild in Rioja (Macán), while Vega Sicilia remains a founding member of Primum Familiae Vini, the exclusive association of twelve of the world's greatest wine-producing families.

$750.00

$449.00

750ML