the wine isVega-Sicilia "Unico" 1968. I bought 2 bottles of it at
auction many years ago, and it has been properly stored. There were no
cork or other issues, and the fill was still in the neck. The very
long cork was clean at the top and well seated.

The wine still was intense in color with only a bit of age showing
around the rim. The overall impression is perfect balance of
everything and great complexity.The tannins are resolved and about as
dry as in a top Bordeaux. There is complex wood, perhaps cedar, with
traces of sandalwood. The fruit is a very complex mixture of dark and
red fruits. There are mixed spice notes. The finish is very long. This
was bottle 23175 out of 45300 bottles and 2000 magnums of the 1968.
Spanish wines do not get any better than Vega Sicilia, in my opinion.
I also would rank it with the better reds of France. This wine has
always been difficult to find and expensive and has become extremely
expensive in recent years. With such small production, it is a wonder
any is exported. The owners likely want their wine to be known around
the world.

With such small production, it is a wonder
> any is exported. The owners likely want their wine to be known around
> the world.
>

I do not think current figures are as small as the 45000 bottles you
mention (I will check). It is widely available in Spain, for the
distribution chain El Corte Inglés has had an excellent relationship with
the winery for years. Their "Reserva Especial", a blend of 3 vintages, is
much more scarce, I think.

So, when a special request is made for a given vintage of Unico, they can
get it directly from the winery.

The current release I think is 99 and it is quite easy to purchase as many
as you want from one of their stores (and they have plenty), and even from
previous vintages.

I met Pablo Álvarez (CEO) once and have an outstanding opinion on him. I
also second your thought that Spanish wine does not get much better than
Vega Sicilia. But not only for the flagship wine. They make the best Ribera
you can buy for 40 euros (Alion) and the best wine from Toro (Pintia).

With current prices (a tad below 200 eur retail, about 140 if you are in
their mailing list), it is not easy for a winelover with a mortgage loan to
drink Vega Sicilia but that's how the wine world is now. I am happy,
though, with a couple of bottles of 94 and another couple of 99.

s.

On Feb 8, 3:52*am, santiago > wrote:
> *With such small production, it is a wonder
>
> > any is exported. The owners likely want their wine to be known around
> > the world.
>
> I do not think current figures are as small as the 45000 bottles you
> mention (I will check).
The production I quoted came from the label and applies only to the
1968 Unico. I have one bottle left of the 1953 Unico, and it is bottle
26826 of 32000 bottles of Unico produced in 1953. There is no mention
of magnums on the label. Perhaps the production of Unico has increased
considerably in recent years.


It is widely available in Spain, for the
> distribution chain El Corte Inglés has had an excellent relationship with
> the winery for years. Their "Reserva Especial", a blend of 3 vintages, is
> much more scarce, I think.
>
> So, when a special request is made for a given vintage of Unico, they can
> get it directly from the winery.
>
> The current release I think is 99 and it is quite easy to purchase as many
> as you want from one of their stores (and they have plenty), and even from
> previous vintages.
>
> I met Pablo Álvarez (CEO) once and have an outstanding opinion on him. I
> also second your thought that Spanish wine does not get much better than
> Vega Sicilia. But not only for the flagship wine. They make the best Ribera
> you can buy for 40 euros (Alion) and the best wine from Toro (Pintia).

The situation may be somewhat like that for Mme. Leroy's top Burgundy
wines. She is rich enough to keep reserves of some very old wines that
can be had if you can pay her extremely high prices for them. Then
there are rich investors that buy rare wines, keep them many years,
and then hopefully sell them for much more than they paid, often
through an auction. Wines on this level often are status symbols for
the very rich, especially in Asia. If you were the CEO of an important
bank in parts of Asia, you might not want to serve business guests
anything other than what is considered the "best". Ch. Lafite has now
become the darling in parts of Asia, and this likely has partly caused
the price of Lafite to increase considerably on comparison with other
first growths. Even though Vega Sicilia Unico is expensive now, it
could easily become 2 or more times as expensive if it becomes a
status symbol in wide parts of Asia.

> With current prices (a tad below 200 eur retail, about 140 if you are in
> their mailing list), it is not easy for a winelover with a mortgage loan to *
> drink Vega Sicilia but that's how the wine world is now. I am happy,
> though, with a couple of bottles of 94 and another couple of 99.
>
> s.

cwdjrxyz > wrote in
:
> The production I quoted came from the label and applies only to the
> 1968 Unico. I have one bottle left of the 1953 Unico, and it is bottle
> 26826 of 32000 bottles of Unico produced in 1953. There is no mention
> of magnums on the label. Perhaps the production of Unico has increased
> considerably in recent years.

I know, I know! Just wanted to mention that current released 1999 was
produced in a quantity of about 95.000 bottles, which is not that bad if
you consider the price it commands.
>
> The situation may be somewhat like that for Mme. Leroy's top Burgundy
> wines. She is rich enough to keep reserves of some very old wines that
> can be had if you can pay her extremely high prices for them.

I do not know for sure, but I do not think prices are absurd for older
vintages of VS. Obviously more expensive that current releases. El Corte
Inglés is also one chain that does not speculate with wine (they do not
change the prices of Bordeaux reflecting changes in demand, for example).

Then
> there are rich investors that buy rare wines, keep them many years,
> and then hopefully sell them for much more than they paid, often
> through an auction. Wines on this level often are status symbols for
> the very rich, especially in Asia. If you were the CEO of an important
> bank in parts of Asia, you might not want to serve business guests
> anything other than what is considered the "best". Ch. Lafite has now
> become the darling in parts of Asia, and this likely has partly caused
> the price of Lafite to increase considerably on comparison with other
> first growths. Even though Vega Sicilia Unico is expensive now, it
> could easily become 2 or more times as expensive if it becomes a
> status symbol in wide parts of Asia.

And most of us, wine lovers, hate that. Why cannot they direct their demand
to Ferrari or Faberge Eggs instead?

Now, I have three bottles of Domaine de la Janasse CdP Vielles Vignes 2007
that I purchased at retail price of €60 and now are worth around €150 by
status seekers. I guess that if Parker scores it 102 in a few years I might
sell them and purchase a new car. Even a Ferrari <VBG>

Best,

s.