★頂級傳統Rioja
★靚年才釀造(07/08沒有釀造)
★JS98/RP96/Decanter94/WS92/WE92/ST92/vivino4.3(3317酒評)
Prado Enea Gran Reserva, Bodegas Muga 2006
Bodegas Muga是西班牙Rioja產區的重要名莊。酒莊共釀5款紅酒,最貴的是Aro, 然後Torre Muga, Prado Enea, Selection Especial(前排介紹過) 和 Muga Rioja。
若您飲過多次全系列的酒款之後,心目中Muga酒莊釀得最精彩的酒應該是Prado Enea ,屬於老式的Gran Reserva紅酒。而Aro或Torre走的是新式路線,每瓶出廠要價110歐元(Torre 60歐),因為太濃厚,有太多新木桶香氣,不是我心目中的傳統Rioja;連酒莊第三代的經營者與釀酒師Manu和Jorge Muga都私下承認釀造這款酒只是要證明他們也有能力釀出美國酒評家Robert Parker喜好的高分酒。 p.s. 呢位酒評家退休了,聽聞很多澳洲酒莊不再追求爆香、落重本用新桶的technical wine, 開始還原基本步,釀造terroir driven wine, 以表現風土特質。這樣大家以後就可以飲到不同風味的澳洲酒了。
Rioja Prado Enea Gran Reserva, Bodegas Muga 2006, 葡萄品種:70% Tempranillo, 20% Garnacha and the remaining 10% Mazuelo and Graciano, 橡木桶內發酵,不控制溫度,不添加酵母。浸漬期時間長短不定,但可以持續長達20天。將葡萄酒在大橡木桶中陳釀12個月之後,再在橡木桶中陳釀36個月,最後入樽陳釀最少36個月,才出售。
*98 pts James Suckling*
A powerful and layered red with ripe berry, cedar and licorice notes. Roses and sandalwood. Full body, very deep and intense. Changing all the time in the glass. A superb wine. Drink or hold.
*96 pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate*
The 2006 Prado Enea is a phenomenal bottle of traditional Rioja at its best. A blend of 70% Tempranillo, 20% Garnacha and the remaining 10% Mazuelo and Graciano aged for a long time in oak and bottled before release. This is a practice quite common from yesteryear, but that is a true rarity today. The technical data provided talks about incredible parameters, 14% alcohol and a pH of 3.39, both extremely low for a warm vintage like 2006. The grapes are sourced from higher-altitude terraced plots where the climate is cooler and drier and the soils are rich in clay. This is a wine that is not automatically produced every year. The wine spends its elevage in oak containers of different size, origin and age for no less than three years. The nose is intoxicating with a superb mixture of tertiary and more primary aromas like old furniture, cloves, cracked pepper, incense and cigar ash plus cherries in liqueur (that Garnacha!). The palate is medium-bodied, with great freshness (Jorge Muga tells me the pH is stabilized with aging in barrel), acidity and balance, with a silky texture, ultra-fine tannins and great persistence and length. This wine feels younger than it is, and seems to be aging at a glacial pace. With the stuffing and balance it has this should make very old bones, and drink greatly throughout its life. Superb! At this quality level the price seems like a bargain. 90,000 bottles produced. The next Prado Enea will be 2009 as they didn't get what they look for in this wine in either 2007 and 2008. Those were two cold vintages, and 2007 had 100 liters of rain during the harvest. Prado Enea is harvested in November and in 2008 there was frost at the end of October.