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  • Country ranking ?

    129
  • Producer ranking ?

    42
  • Decanting time

    3h
  • When to drink

    now to 2030
  • Food Pairing

    Red Beet Arancini

The Tb points given to this wine are the world’s most valid and most up-to-date evaluation of the quality of the wine. Tastingbook points are formed by the Tastingbook algorithm which takes into account the wine ratings of the world's best-known professional wine critics, wine ratings by thousands of tastingbook’s professionals and users, the generally recognised vintage quality and reputation of the vineyard and winery. Wine needs at least five professional ratings to get the Tb score. Tastingbook.com is the world's largest wine information service which is an unbiased, non-commercial and free for everyone.

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95 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

 Deep red. High-pitched aromas of redcurrant, dried cherry, potpourri and spicecake. Silky in texture and alluringly spherical, offering seamless red fruit and floral pastille flavors and late notes of blood orange and Asian spices. Nothing heavy or fat here and yet this delivers the impact of a large-scaled wine. The finish is expansive and extremely persistent, leaving notes of rose and sweet red fruits behind. I find this to be drinking extremely well now but have no doubt that it will live a long life on its balance. 

95 points Wine Enthusiast

 Like liquid silk, it's so smooth and supple. Aromas of fresh mountain herbs pour forth from the glass along with the scents of cherry, cough drop and dried spices. Very light on its feet with pronounced elegance as opposed to raw power. The palate is sleek and feminine, with flavors of dried red fruits, raspberry and light medicinality. Spectacular as per usual, with 85% Tempranillo and 15% Cab Sauvignon. Drink now–2025.

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The Story

Of the 1,000 hectares making up the Vega Sicilia estate, 210 are used for wine growing, and there are 19 soil-types divided for management purposes into 52 plots with very specific characteristics. The influence of the flow of the river Duero and the passage of time have been vital in forming these soils.

70 of these hectares are employed to produce Unico. A unique, magical estate which, along with extraordinary management of the vineyard, enables the production of legendary wines.

The Unico ageing process is probably the world's longest, since it runs for at least ten years from the barrel to the bottle. 225-litre barrels of French and American wood, both new and used, and 20,000-litre tanks. A long complex process for a great wine.

The flagship wine Unico is a wine for all eternity. Only a handful of terroirs worldwide are able to match wine's extraordinary ageing capacity. This is a wine of inimitable style, mature, tremendously elegant and silky, in which the ageing process brings the mystique of the essence to the surface.

The qualities of the Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon in different proportions are assembled to perfection in this wine. Each provides a differentiating factor that makes the wine great in every vintage.

The vines are grown on plots where the land is located at the point between the slopes down from the wasteland and the alluvial plain. The soil nearest the surface is made out of fine colluvial deposits from the hillside with small fragment of limestone. There is abundant quartz gravel deeper down in a sandy main soil. There are many angular limestone boulders on the surface.

Red wine made in controlled fermentation using native yeast in wooden tanks. Malolactic fermentation also takes place in wood.  After its fermentation, its goes through what is probably the world's longest ageing of a red wine, almost 10 years between wood and bottle. The different stages take place in different types of barrel: American and French wood, new and used 225-litre barrels, 20,000-litre vats, each batch is what determines the type of wood and the time spent in each container. After the stage in the wood, it is aged in the bottle to complete a long and complex ageing process. It will normally spend 6 years in wood and three in the bottle.

The different elements in its preparation are fine-tuned in the search of the master line that has guided the wine. Único remains true to a clear and well-defined style, with an inimitable character and style; elegance, strength, ageing capacity... A unique and timeless taste that has elevated it to among the aristocracy of the great classic wines.

It offers an infinite complexity that is gradually revealed, in every sip, the palate immensely silky and elegant, and has an ageing capacity that only a handful of wines in the world can claim.

Bodegas Vega Sicilia Unico is still “a prophet in its own land”, Spain, and only a small part of the production leaves the country to be sold abroad. The production of Unico varies from 30.000 to 100.000 bottles depending on the year. The commercial success of Unico is nevertheless decided beforehand regardless of the amount produced, since each vintage is already sold out before the bottling. Yet 700 people are queuing for Unico´s customer list hoping that some of the customers of long standing would give up their place, or forget to order anything for two years, which automatically drops them from the list. The list of the privileged subscribers does not exceed 4,000, and they naturally remain anonymous. Pablo Alvarez, manager of Vega Sicilia, is conscientious when it comes to impartiality towards long standing loyal customers, even though the balance between the company´s firm commercial policy and influential quarters wanting wines outside its customer list is not always easy to maintain.

For example, when Queen Elizabeth II visited Spain a few years ago, the British Embassy wanted Vega Sicilia to represent Spain´s wine tradition at the dinner arranged to honour the Queen. Although the order had been duly placed and at decent notice, the estate was able to deliver only four cases for the dinner, of course with all manner of apologies for not having been able to meet the order in full.
Respecting loyal customers has been a matter of tremendous importance for Bodegas Vega Sicilia throughout its history. When Jesús Anadón was the estate steward the United States´ importer paid a visit and told him that in his faraway homeland the demand was more than 200.000 bottles. As he determinedly insisted that his order be multiplied, the inimitable Jesús stated without blinking an eye that the limit was 500 bottles and no more, and this was his last word.

Unico is a unique wine, and one of the great Spanish classics. It is the signature wine of Vega Sicilia and is taken from some of the oldest vines available. The wine is mostly Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon.
– The Unico wine is produced only in exceptional years, that is, in the course of one decade two or three vintages are "sacrificed" in order to maintain the high quality. It is right that the effect of the harvest is present in each wine: then the -81, -74, -75, -66. -65 and -62 are Unicos in aromatical complexity reaching baroque extremes and the -70, -89, -62, -42 and -22 ones are based on the tannic power reaching to be perpetual wine” , said Mr. Alvarez to me when we asked his personal opinion best vintages of Unicos

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Wine Information

The 2000 Unico is deep crimson-colored with an ethereal perfume aided by its extended upbringing. Aromas of Asian spices, lavender, incense, truffle, and confiture of black fruits are compelling. Sweet, forward, rich, and hedonistic, it nevertheless has the balance and structure to continue evolving for another 5-10 years. In strong vintages Vega Sicilia drinks well at age 50 and I would expect the same of the 2000. Bodegas Vega Sicilia remains a benchmark for the world's great red wines. The Valbuena bottling receives 3 years in barrel and 2 years in bottle prior to release. On the occasion of my visit in May 2010, the three Reserva Especials already in bottle and awaiting release were tasted side by side. They are identified (for the purposes of this review only) as the 2013 Release, the 2012 Release, and the 2011 Release. I was not told what vintages are in each bottling but it actually makes little difference. The Reserva Especials are blended to a house style designed to reflect Vega Sicilia at its very best. The vagaries of vintage (as reflected in Unico) are blended away leaving a wine that is, in my opinion, better than any of the single vintage wines with the possible exception of the 1942. 

RP

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Vintage 2000

The Rioja vintage of 2000 in Spain is generally considered a very good vintage, although it may not have reached the same exceptional status as Bordeaux's 2000 vintage. Here are some key characteristics of the Rioja Vintage 2000:

  1. Quality: The 2000 vintage in Rioja produced wines of good to very good quality. While it might not be regarded as one of the absolute best vintages in Rioja history, it was a solid year overall.

  2. Weather Conditions: The weather during the growing season was generally favorable, with warm and dry conditions in the lead-up to the harvest. This allowed the grapes to ripen well and resulted in wines with good fruit concentration.

  3. Aging Potential: Rioja wines from the 2000 vintage tend to have the potential to age gracefully, particularly those from top producers and reserva or gran reserva wines, which are aged for extended periods before release.

  4. Varietal Characteristics: Rioja wines are typically made from Tempranillo grapes, which often show characteristics of red fruit, spice, and oak aging. In the 2000 vintage, these characteristics were generally well-expressed.

  5. Diversity: Rioja is a diverse wine region with various subzones and wineries, so the quality and style of wines can vary depending on the producer and specific terroir.

Overall, the Rioja Vintage 2000 produced wines that are well-regarded by enthusiasts and collectors. It may not have garnered the same level of global attention as some Bordeaux vintages, but it remains a solid vintage for Rioja wines, and well-made bottles from this vintage can still be enjoyable and have aging potential today.

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Tasting note

color

Full

flavors

Blackcurrant and Smoky

nose

Intense

recommend

Yes

Written Notes

Not generally reckoned a great vintage in the way of 2004 and 2005. 2000 called for viticultural and winemaking skill. 40% of the crop was discarded. Untimely rain. Needs more time.
Crimson with some evolution at the rim. Not that expressive on the nose. Concentrated and a bit medicinal but marked by quite high acidity and rather awkward tannins. A bit gawky at the moment. Fresh finish.

  • 88p

Ruby. Dark fruits, some spices, liquorice, vanilla, intense, layered and deep nose. Fresh acidity, ripe tannins, fruity, dark berries, juicy, red berries, spices, dark berries, intense, long. 94

  • 94p

Dark garnet red colour. Opulent and rich character but still slightly closed. Fine toasting, discreet oak, excellent fruit with a good balance. On the palate well structured with excellent length.

  • 93p
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Information

Origin

Valbuena, Ribera el Duero

Vintage Quality

Excellent

Value For Money

Very good
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