One of the most exceptional wine bargains in the marketplace is the 1990 Muga Unfiltered Reserva. Made from 70% Tempranillo, 20% Garnacha, and 10% Graciano and Mazuel, this wine spent two years in oak and was bottled unfiltered. Although fully mature, it will last for another 10-15 years. The color is dark ruby with no amber at the edge. The gorgeously sweet, vanillin, jammy, red and blackcurrant nose offers up scents of cedar and spice. Expansive on the palate, with full body, and sensationally layered, succulent fruit, this complex, complete, flavorful wine offers intensity as well as a voluptuous texture at a quality level suggestive of a $35-$50 a bottle. Drink it over the next 15+ years. This is a Rioja to buy by the case.
The Bodegas Muga is one of the most traditionally run wineries in Spain, believing in long wood aging for their red wines, and releasing the wines only when they are close to full maturity.
Importer: Fine Estates From Spain, Jorge Ordonez, West Roxbury, MA; tel. (617) 327-1613