Marques de Murrieta Rioja Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial 2010 750ml

This is at a beautiful stage of evolution, showing aromas of dried flowers, bark, red berries and hints of tar and tea. It has an exceptionally elegant profile with a modern touch. The fruit is ethereal, the tannins finely etched and precise. The wine is crystalline, with purity and elegance that define its style. It is a blend of 84% tempranillo and 16% mazuelo. Aged for 26 months in French and American oak and a further 13 months in concrete. Approachable now, but will continue to evolve favorably. Drink or hold.

It is telling to compare warm and cool years at the turn of the 2010s, when these wines increasingly reflect both vintage character and a firmly established house style. The 2010 Castillo Ygay (Tempranillo with a dash of Mazuelo) comes from a cool year and shows as such: initially closed and reductive, clearly mid-evolution. With air, it opens onto fine, fresh plum and cassis alongside finely drawn oak, mint, menthol and a touch of lavender. Tertiary notes are beginning to form, including delicate dried flowers, and there is beeswax again in the mix. Taut and slightly compact, it finishes long and tertiary-leaning, anchored by juicy freshness and tannins that still carry energy.

I had very high expectations for the 2010 Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial, and the wine delivered as expected. 2010 was one of the finest vintages in Rioja in recent years, and this blend of Tempranillo with 15% Mazuelo (Cariñena) has to be one of the finest modern day Castillo de Ygays. The grapes come from a plot planted in 1966 at 485 meters in altitude, the highest in the estate, and the vines yielded 3,500 kilos per hectare. The two varieties fermented separately in stainless steel for 11 days, and the wine spent 26 months in a mixture of American and French oak barrels. I tasted the 2009 next to this 2010, and I had also had a bottle two nights before. So, I was able to compare this with the 2009, which was a very different year, as 2010 was a cooler year and a priori a more adequate year for long-aging wines like this Gran Reserva. The difference was the vegetative cycle, as the vinification and élevage was the same. This is sleeker and sharper, less developed and livelier than the 2009, which already shows some signs of "old wine" with aromas that remind me of the old classical Rioja reds. It has greatness and finesse and is a very attractive wine with all the stuffing and balance that is needed for a long (and positive) aging in bottle. This is one of the finest modern day vintages of Castillo Ygay. This is going to develop in the direction of the classical bottlings from yesteryear.

Maturing well, this round red is a lovely example of the traditional style. Orange peel, dried cherry, forest floor, vanilla and black tea flavors mingle harmoniously over round tannins and citrusy acidity. Generous but gentle, lively, balanced and harmonious. Tempranillo and Mazuelo. Drink now through 2030. 680 cases imported.

A very classy, elegant and seamless wine, that has gorgeous drinkability now, but will age 20 years more with ease. Restrained but open aromas of ripe dark-skinned plums, wild strawberries and darker brambles, the fruit richness shining through more here than the 2009. The palate is ripe, supple and very complete and complex. boasting cocoa powder tannins, balsamic acidity and vibrant black forest fruit richness.

Earthy cherry, plum and cassis aromas are dry and complex, while this feels integrated and balanced. Cherry, red plum and cocoa flavors remain young and vibrant on the palate, while this pedigreed gran reserva offers its usual depth and length on the finish. Ten years in and this still has more in waiting. Drink through 2045.