Vega Sicilia

A bottle of Vega Sicilia Único from the 2000 harvest

Bodegas Vega Sicilia is a Spanish winery located in the Ribera del Duero Denominación de Origen in the Province of Valladolid, Castile and León (northern Spain). The winery was founded in 1864 by Don Eloy Lecanda y Chaves, who planted various grapes from the Bordeaux wine region of France, including Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, which are still being used in the wines today.[1]

Since 1982, the same year that the Ribera del Duero was granted Denominación de Origen (DO) status, the winery has been owned by the Álvarez family who are members of the Primum Familiae Vini.[1]

In comparing the wines of Spain to the First Growth wines of Bordeaux, wine expert Hugh Johnson, after comparing Rioja producers Marqués de Riscal and Marqués de Murrieta to Château Lafite Rothschild and Château Mouton Rothschild, respectively, stated: "Vega Sicilia is the Latour; but Latour of a vintage that has raisined the grapes and fried the picking crews."—a reference to the significantly warmer climate and different growing conditions of the Ribera del Duero.[2]

Vega Sicilia's wines are recognised worldwide as some of the finest and most valued red wines on the market, with its top wine selling for an average of $497 per bottle.[3] In 2022, a Vertical 36 of Único was sold at a Swiss auction for a record €111,477.[4]

  1. ^ a b J. Gordon (ed) Opus Vino pg 215, DK Publishing New York 2010, ISBN 978-0-7566-6751-1
  2. ^ High Johnson Vintage: The Story of Wine pg 429–432 Simon and Schuster 1989 ISBN 0-671-68702-6
  3. ^ "Vega Sicilia Unico Gran Reserva, Ribera del Duero, Spain: prices". Wine Searcher. Retrieved 2016-11-23.
  4. ^ Alvarez, Juan Ignacio (2022). "Vega Sicilia bate récord y alcanza un precio de 112.000 euros por un lote de 36 botellas". El Economista. Retrieved November 22, 2023.

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