“The 2015 vintage of Rioja Finca Ygay “Gran Reserva” from Marqués de Murrieta is crafted from a cépages of eighty percent tempranillo, nine percent each of graciano and mazuelo and two percent garnacha. The wine was aged for twenty-seven months in two hundred and twenty-five liter, American oak casks and comes in at an even fourteen percent in this warm year. The bouquet wafts from the glass in a complex blend of red and black raspberries, cigar wrapper, lovely meaty tones, cloves, a touch of celery seed, salty minerality, spicy American oak and a topnote of woodsmoke. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and youthfully structured, with absolutely superb depth at the core, fine soil signature and grip, ripe, well-integrated tannins, tangy acids and excellent focus and balance on the long, complex and very promising finish. 2015 produced plenty [113] of potential structure in Rioja and this excellent Gran Reserva has a fine chassis for long-term cellaring and should prove to be a very long-lived wine that will drink splendidly once it is ready. 2033-2100.”

“The 2018 Rioja Finca Ygay “Reserva” from Marqués de Murrieta is composed from a blend of eighty-six percent tempranillo, eight percent graciano, four percent mazuelo and two percent garnacha in this vintage. The wine is aged for twenty-one months in American oak casks, two hundred and twenty-five liters in size, with a percentage of the casks new for this wine. The wine is still fairly youthful at five years of age, offering up a bright and complex nose of raspberries, cigar wrapper, a lovely base of soil tones, Rioja spices, woodsmoke, a touch of spiced meats and cedary oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and already nicely transparent in personality, with a lovely core of fruit, excellent soil signature and grip, ripe tannins and a long, tangy and complex finish. This is going to be a superb bottle, but with the addition of some new American oak for the elevage, the wine still has some tannins to soften up before it starts to truly drink properly, so show it a bit of patience and let it rest comfortably in the cellar for a few years. 2030-2085+.”

“Look at an early bottle of this wine and you will see that it was labelled Château Ygay. However, eventually France complained – hence the Castillo Ygay we have now. The Castle is a worthy name for one of Rioja's most famed wines from one of Rioja's founding wineries. It carries lightly its two years in American oak and its following years in bottle, revealing elegant spicing, red fruits and bright acidity. The 16% Mazuelo is important here for freshness: a distinguishing feature of Murrieta vineyard resources.”

“Marqués de Murrieta spoils the Rioja lover for choice, with Gran Reserva Especial as well as this fine Gran Reserva, and a very delicious reserva. Why select a Gran Reserva when the Reserva is so good? Because this is a wine made with great precision by winemaker María Vargas, who is also a master blender. Her attention to detail brings out a wonderfully complex expression of the succulent dark fruit, layered with very fine American oak.”

“Delivers a generous range of black plum reduction, floral, dried fig, mocha and eucalyptus aromas and flavors set in a sleek, well-defined frame that integrates sculpted tannins and orange peel acidity. Maintains a deft balance between richness and restraint. Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon and Graciano. Drink now through 2030.”