2007 Marqués de Murrieta "Castillo Ygay" Gran Reserva Especial Rioja

The aromas of this show an amazing freshness of flowers and herbs such as lavender, rosemary, and violet. Then it goes to raspberry, candy and currants. Black licorice too. A truly great wine on the nose. Full-bodied, racy and linear. So polished. It's like a red ruby. 86% Tempranillo and 14% Mazuelo in the blend. For release in September 2015. Great length and future. Give it three years or so. Or decant two hours in advance. (11/2015)

A worthy follow-up of the 2005, the 2007 Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial will be released in late 2015. This is a cuvée of mostly Tempranillo with the balance of Mazuelo (Cariñena), a very important grape for Castillo de Ygay in percentages that vary depending on the vintage, and it's almost 15% in 2007. 2007 was not an easy vintage and in Ygay they had a terrible mildew attack and they lost 50% of the bunches. It's a cold, rainy year, but because of that circumstance the wine is concentrated. This is still a baby, long and with depth and tannins that should melt in a couple of years. Compared with the 2005 it is fresher, perhaps not as concentrated, but for me the extra freshness compensates and puts it at a very similar quality level. And the rule of thumb is to wait at least ten years after the harvest to start uncorking any Castillo de Ygay. Cheap it is not, but very good value it is, for the quality it delivers. (LG) 95+ (4/2015)

The 2007 Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial is a more elegant, perfumed example of this wine yet it still has beautiful ripeness and depth in its sweet black raspberry, currants, spicy oak, floral, and vanilla-laced aromas and flavors. With medium to full-bodied richness, it’s not massive by any measure yet is beautifully balanced and seamless, and this beauty just glides over the palate. It’s still a baby and needs a solid 4-5 years, if not a decade, to hit prime time. (12/2018)

Appealing red fruits sweep across a sweet and succulent palate. Lively fruit and finely grained, grippy tannins. Great drinkability and superb balance. (panel tasting) (3/2018)

Deep ruby. Sexy aromas of blackberry, cherry, pipe tobacco and Indian spices acquire an intense floral nuance in the glass. Fleshy dark fruit and rose pastille flavors open up steadily with air and show impressive energy, and a mineral note adds lift. Clings impressively on the subtly tannic finish, where the floral and spice notes return. (JR) (5/2017)

Lively and graceful, offering bright cherry, vanilla, clove and tobacco flavors that mingle harmoniously over well-integrated tannins, this red is not muscular but focused and expressive, balanced and long. (TM, Web Only-2015)

Vanilla, clove, milk chocolate and rich, almost porty sweetness. Long, oak-influenced finish. The fruit still has freshness, although it is the oak spice that is most apparent on the palate. I'd be tempted to drink this soon. (RH) 17/20 points (6/2017)

Marqués de Murrieta was one of the two oldest, historical bodegas to put Rioja on the map in the mid-19th century (the other one was Marqués de Riscal). It is also an estate wine with fruit coming from various parcels on their property just outside of Logroño. This gran reserva is marked by a healthy proportion of Mazuelo (around 7%), which thrives in this slightly warmer, drier area just outside of Logroño. Always a fantastic wine, truly one of the great Gran Reservas, it reaches a whole new level in this 2007 vintage, a year which was rather damp and cool in much of Rioja Alta, but just about perfect downriver by the Ygay property.