Valbuena, despite its long ageing in cellar, is Vega Sicilia’s ‘youngest’ wine. Although having the same high quality features as its exceptional cellar companions, the emblematic Único and Único Reserva Especial, Valbuena exhibits a character of its own, with an impressive aromatic richness and a magnificent harmony between modernity and tradition. A wine which has great maturity, with well-handled oak and a complex connection between vinosity and fruitiness.
VINIFICATION
Valbuena is made from the Tinto Fino variety, together with a small proportion of Merlot; it ferments with native yeasts and it’s matured for five years —hence its name— in containers of different capacities (from 225-litre barrels to 20,000-litre vats), types and ages. A total of three years in oak and two in bottle; a very special process for a very special wine. The Tempranillo (or Tinto Fino) grapes come from gently-sloping hillsides, with a high expression soil that’s based on limestone in Valbuena de Duero. In the vineyard, green pruning is carried out methodically in order to obtain grapes which are concentrated and full of character. Once inside the winery, the aim is to maintain a constant style in its production process so that the wine expresses the singularity of each vintage and all the character of this magnificent and austere terroir.
TASTING NOTE
The result is always sublime. A delightful red wine, a burgundy-red colour with glints of very intense ruby, A complex nose with a perfect balance between the aromas derived from the superb use of oak and the perfect ripeness of exceptional grapes. Wild strawberries, smoke, pencil lead, spices, (peppers and vanilla), and a balsamic note, all becoming more noticeable after a while in the glass and a mystic element which seems inherent in Vega Sicilia wines. On the palate, its mouthfeel is captivating; it’s silky and expressive, powerful and balanced, individual and refined. It makes its exit without really going, leaving behind an almost ever-lasting flourish of elegance.
FOOD PAIRING
Roast lamb, Oven-cooked game meat, Roast suckling pig.
