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Vega Sicilia Único Ribera del Duero 2014

Reviews

99 -Tim Atkin, Master of Wine -

The 2014 Único is the second wine in a row from a cooler, so-called Atlantic year, although the harvest was considerably less wet than 2013. Sourced from the best 40 hectares on the Vega Sicilia estate, covering a total of 30 parcels, this is a stunningly floral, complete, layered Tinto Fino with lily, wild rose and mountain herb aromas, subtle French and 25% American oak, some added backbone from 6% Cabernet Sauvignon, and a palate of bramble, black cherry, Asian spices and tobacco embellished and freshened by a bright, chalky finish.

98 -Robert Parker's Wine Advocate -

The 2014 Único was produced with grapes from 40 hectares of vines selected from the 210 hectares the winery has. The grapes were picked between September 20th and October 3rd, and the blend was 94% Tinto Fino and 6% Cabernet Sauvignon. It fermented in oak vats with indigenous yeasts, with malolactic in stainless steel. The first part of the aging was in 225-liter barrels and the second one in 20,000-liter oak vats, and the élevage lasts 10 years between oak and bottle. It's a year that combines power and elegance; it's concentrated but has subtleness. I had a unique opportunity to taste it from magnum one year ago and was truly impressed. This tasting was consistent with those sensations. 2014 was a good vintage in the zone, a year with good rain and a big crop, not as powerful as 2012 or 2015 but a year with finesse. The wine feels very balanced, lower in alcohol and with integrated oak, crunchy, fresh and still young. It feels quite classical; it's fine-boned, elegant but also powerful, more like the Únicos from yesteryear. It has to be one of the finest vintages of recent times. It has 14% alcohol, a pH of 3.85 and five grams of acidity measured in tartaric acid per liter of wine. One of the largest vintages of Único, 104,606 bottles, 3,612 magnums, 356 double magnums, 50 imperials and five Salmanazars were produced. It was bottled in June 2020. It seems like years ending in four—1994, 2004, 2014 (but not 84, which was not produced)—are very good here. We'll have to wait and see about the 2024.

98 -James Suckling -

98 -Wine Enthusiast -

97 -Decanter -

Powerful aromas of fine oak. Arrives crisp, fresh and smooth, swelling to redcurrant and red cherry. Very youthful still, full-bodied and round, but always remaining crisp and fresh. Tannins are firm but well-balanced. Promising a long life ahead but remarkably approachable now. 2014 followed a mild winter with a warmer spring and summer. Yield 25.2hl/ha. One of the first years with the influence of new technical director Gonzalo Iturriaga. One year in new barrels, six months in used barrels, then three and a half years in large-format tanks. Bottled May 2020. Tasted from magnum.

97 -Vinous -

The 2014 Unico is primarily composed of Tempranillo with an additional 6% dash of Cabernet Sauvignon, both sourced from the eponymous property in Ribera del Duero. Aged at length in barrels and large oak vats, the combination of aging methods brings out the wine's nuances in what was a generous year. A dark garnet-red in the glass. The aromas offer licorice and cedar notes alongside hints of orange peel, petit four, cola and pine. There's a background of ripe dark fruit. The palate is dry and plush with a chalky texture and supple tannins, contributing to the complex character. A nuanced red just at the beginning of its life.

95 -Wine Spectator -

An elegant version, showing a pleasing freshness, with a sense of restraint and integration to the concentrated flavors of ripe black plum and warm fig, backed by notes of dried mint, black tea, licorice, vanilla and leather. The supple tannins are well-knit and velvety in texture on the spiced finish. Not a powerhouse, but long, focused and expressive. Tinto Fino and Cabernet Sauvignon. Drink now through 2034. 9,476 cases made.

Technical Details

Blend 94% Tempranillo, 6% 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 12 months in new barrels, 6 months in used barrels, then 42 months in large format tanks
Aging / Cooperage Aged a minimum of 120 months; 60 months in oak, followed by a resting period in bottle before release
Alcohol 13.9%
Production 8,717 cases

Vega Sicilia Único Ribera del Duero 2014

Name: Vega Sicilia Único Ribera del Duero 2014
Brand: First Bottle
SKU: 1014863
Price: 399.0 USD
Availability: InStock

Tempranillo | Castilla y León

TA99, WA98, JS98, WE98, DC97, VN97, WS95

SPECIAL: Complimentary Ground Shipping!

Organic Practices

$700.00

$399.00

750ML

43% OFF RETAIL!

Some wines you simply defer to, and Vega Sicilia Único is at the top of that list. No other red from Spain commands the same reverence at auction or the same respect in a great restaurant cellar, earning a place alongside Pétrus, DRC, and Screaming Eagle. Each vintage is released only after roughly a decade of patient barrel and bottle aging, and the 2014 has earned some of the highest praise of any recent release. Master of Wine Tim Atkin awarded it 99 points, while James Suckling and the Wine Advocate both gave 98s, the latter calling it one of the finest vintages of recent times. We have just ten bottles, priced more than $120 below retail. This is not a wine we come by often at any price, let alone this one.

2014 was a good year in Ribera del Duero – ample rain and a generous crop, less powerful than 2012 or 2015, but marked by elegance, with lower alcohol, and beautifully integrated oak. The blend is 94% Tinto Fino and 6% Cabernet Sauvignon, sourced from 40 hectares of the estate's 210, and aged 10 years between oak and bottle. The room fills with rich aromas of black cherry, bramble, and tobacco, framed by cedar, graphite, and a touch of earthiness. On the palate it's dry and plush, with a chalky texture and supple, fine-grained tannins – classical, fine-boned, and elegant, yet with real underlying power, in the style of the Únicos of an earlier era. Drinking well now with air, and made to last for decades to come! Don’t miss the chance to own Spain’s most iconic red at an otherworldly price.

About The Producer

Founded in 1864 in Valbuena de Duero, Vega Sicilia is one of Spain's oldest continuously operating wine estates — and without question, its most iconic. The 210-hectare Finca Vega Sicilia lies at the beating heart of Ribera del Duero, where the course of the Douro River has shaped 19 entirely distinct soil types across 64 individual vineyard plots over centuries. The Álvarez family, who acquired the estate in 1982, have devoted decades to reinforcing a philosophy unlike almost any other in the world of wine: a minimum 10-year élevage between harvest and release, cycling the wines through new and used 225-liter French and American oak barrels before extended rest in massive 22,000-liter wooden vats — one of the longest aging programs on Earth. Only 40 of those 210 hectares are dedicated to producing Único — the estate's singular, flagship expression — making it one of the most carefully demarcated and reverently managed terroirs in all of European viticulture. The influence of the Douro River on the soils, the climate, and time itself have all played a defining role in the enduring greatness of these wines. Timeless, in the truest sense of the word.

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