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Muga Reserva Selección Especial 2012 75cl

DOCa | Rioja Alta | Rioja | Spain
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Critics scores
92 Robert Parker
I had the chance to taste two vintages next to each other of the "special selection" red, the younger of which was the 2012 Selección Especial. It's from a dry and warm year where the canopy management and the absence of cover crop resulted in a fresher wine than anticipated. This is always a blend of Tempranillo, Garnacha, Graciano and Mazuelo, usually from older, poorer terraces and older vines, fermented in oak vats and aged in new barriques and then racked to neutral, used barrels. There was a small crop but they harvested late (they tend to have their vineyards in cooler zones), and they saw rains at the end of the harvest, so they didn't produce Torre Muga or Prado Enea, and they even produced less of this. It has perfect ripeness, aromas of spices and noble woods. It has a polished, sleek palate with fine tannins and good freshness. This is very good within the context. 120,000 bottles produced.
90 Wine Spectator
This big red shows a fruity character, with black cherry and red plum flavors backed by blood orange, anise and spice notes. Sweet-tart acidity keeps this juicy and fresh. Expressive. Drink now through 2022. 14,000 cases made.
Producer
Bodegas Muga
Located in the defining terroir of Haro, this family-owned bodega has been producing traditional wines using modern techniques since 1932. There are no stainless-steel vats at Muga, so everything is fermented in oak, following old-fashioned procedures they also, use natural fining processes, and gravity-fed decanting to instill Riojan authenticity. The Cano family even employs a master cooper and three in-house barrel-makers, making Muga the only cellar in Spain to do so. Historic Rioja at its best, their Reserva, Reserva Selección Especial, and Prado Enea Gran Reserva are chiefly Tempranillo - showing the rounded mellow characteristics, while the notions of Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano pack the punch of thrilling warming notes. Their most contemporary styled, Torre Muga, blends Mazuelo and Graciano with mostly Tempranillo, for an impressive new blackberry fruited wine. The bodega, year after year, produces the most reliable and affordable Reservas. But they also offer a delicious higher-end wine called Aro. It is a complex blend of 60-year-old Tempranillo and Graciano, which is aged for 18 months in new French oak.