Vega Sicilia

I've not drunk that much expensive wine - and by expensive I mean superexpensive. One of my dad's favourite wines is Tignanello - he got into wine in the early 1990s when Supertuscans were beginning to gain fashion - and so I've had the odd opportunity to share a bottle with him. We've also shared Bordeaux and Burgundy reds but never anywhere near the top of the end of the scale. More recently, I've also tasted some expensive wines, but having a taste is nothing like sitting down to drink and fully appreciate it.

That's why I was particularly excited to receive a voucher from hangingditch as a Christmas present, which allowed me to buy a bottle of Vega Sicilia's Valbuena 2007. Vega Sicilia is perhaps Spain's greatest estate, and its prices are out of the reach of most mere mortals. Its truly iconic wine is Unico, which hangingditch sells for £250; the Valbuena is its younger sibling, a snip at £120. Having always wanted to know just what the wines of Vega Sicilia taste like, I had to take the opportunity to buy the Valbuena. 

Vega Sicilia

After working in Bordeaux, Eloy Lecanda y Chaves returned to Ribera del Duero in the 1860s to found Vega Sicilia, planting black grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, grapes still grown on their estate. Until the 1980s, Ribera del Duero was not known as a wine region at all, although today its reputation rivals Rioja's. Having established itself as one of Spain's great wines, albeit in an area not known for its wine, Vega Sicilia faltered in the 1960s and 70s, until it was bought in 1982; like the area as a whole, its reputation rose once again. It expanded its interests in the 1990s to found Bodegas Alion, also in Ribera del Duero; still expensive, their wines have gained a serious reputation. Later in the same decade, it established Pintia in neighbouring Toro, an area known for upfront, rustic reds; Pintia has been leading a rise in quality in the area. Vega Sicilia also owns one of the greatest vineyards in Tokaji, Oremus, producing exceptional wines in a more old-fashioned traditional style.

Valbuena 2007

This wine is also known as Valbuena 5°, indiciating its five years of ageing before release. Under two of those years were in both new French and American oak, the rest being in bottle. It's 90% Tinto Fino (more commonly known as Tempranillo, the most important Rioja grape), with the other 10% a combination of Merlot and Malbec.

when drinking expensive wine, a board game should always be to hand

what it tasted like

One fear I had on opening the bottle was that it would be too young, with huge tannins and restrained fruit. This wasn't the case at all. The tannins were ripe and soft (Ribera del Duero is a warm, continental climate) and the red and black fruits rich and ripe. The wine's over six years old, and yet felt so fresh and young. We decanted the wine over an hour before drinking it, yet it kept on developing as we drank: pepper, liquorice, and vanilla; eucalyptus and mint; dried fruits; leather and game; while always maintaining its soft, fruity tannins.

was it worth it?

It's very difficult to assess impartially a wine this expensive. Expectations are raised, superlatives prepared, taste buds whetted. However, this wine truly was exceptional. The red and black fruits were so fresh and ripe, despite the wine being six years old; the oak integrated; the tannins soft; the dried fruits and hints of leather and game indicating the development of tertiary aromas. What made it stand out from other wines, though, was its constantly developing complexity; it was like drinking several different bottles one after the other, different tastes emerging, layers developing, always giving something new to the palate. The only criticism that could be made was that it was so disappointing to finish the bottle, more so than any other wine I've previously had. The wine was gone when it still had so much to offer; it was still opening up, still revealing its layers of complexity, but there was none left. According to the label, 153 double magnums of the wine were released. I want one.