Descripción

Castillo Ygay es una de las etiquetas centenarias de Rioja. Se diseña siguiendo la serigrafía de los primeros vinos de la región. De hecho, fue uno de los primeros vinos que nacieron en Rioja cuando los elaboradores franceses, afectados por la filoxera, llegaron a esta zona para abastecerse. Un vino de obligado conocimiento para saber lo que es un Rioja de corte clásico adaptado a los tiempos. Ha sido elegido mejor vino del mundo de 2020 por Wine Spectator y, como curiosidad, es uno de los riojas favoritos de nuestro equipo.

Ficha técnica

Tipo
Tinto Gran Reserva
Añada
2010
Grado
14.0% vol.
Producción
130.853 botellas y 2.025 magnums
Variedad
85% Tempranillo, 15% Mazuelo
Otros formatos disponibles:
Origen
Rioja

Cata

Vista
Vivaz color guinda.
Nariz
En nariz despliega una intensidad aromática que seduce por sus frutas rojas, notas florales, trufa, incienso y toques especiados.
Boca
En boca es una caricia de textura satinada. Un reserva que luce músculo, elegante bouquet, intensidad frutal y un equilibrio impecables.
Temperatura de servicio
16 ºC.
Consumo
Óptimo hasta 2040 aproximadamente si se conserva en buenas condiciones. Se recomienda decantar 20 minutos antes de disfrutarlo.
Maridaje
La bodega lo recomienda tomar con paloma torcaz al vino tinto, tartar de solomillo de Wagyu, kokotxas de merluza en su pil pil y con queso Moliterno.

Viñedo y elaboración

Nombre
Pago La Plana
Descripción
Viñedo propio ubicado en la zona más elevada de la Finca Ygay, a 485 metros de altitud.
Superficie
40 hectáreas.
Edad
Plantado en 1950.
Suelo
Su suelo arcillo calcáreo disfruta de una gran presencia de cantos rodados en superficie favoreciendo el aprovechamiento del agua de lluvia y la óptima maduración de sus uvas.
Clima
Continental con influencias atlánticas y mediterráneas.
Cosecha
Vendimia manual. El Tempranillo se vendimió el 6 y 18 de octubre y el Mazuelo el 21 de octubre.
Vinificación
Los racimos se despalillan y estrujan suavemente. Las uvas fermentan por separado en depósitos de acero inoxidable, con control de temperatura. El encubado tiene una duración de 11 días durante los cuales se realizan continuas labores de "remontados" y "bazuqueos" para favorecer el contacto del mosto con los hollejos y provocar una lenta y natural extracción de aromas y polifenoles.
Envejecimiento
24 meses en barricas de roble americano y francés de 225 litros.
Embotellado
Tuvo lugar en marzo de 2015.

Opinión de los críticos

The Wine Advocate:

I had very high expectations for the 2010 Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial, and the wine delivered as expected. 2010 was one of the finest vintages in Rioja in recent years, and this blend of Tempranillo with 15% Mazuelo (Cariñena) has to be one of the finest modern day Castillo de Ygays. The grapes come from a plot planted in 1966 at 485 meters in altitude, the highest in the estate, and the vines yielded 3,500 kilos per hectare. The two varieties fermented separately in stainless steel for 11 days, and the wine spent 26 months in a mixture of American and French oak barrels. I tasted the 2009 next to this 2010, and I had also had a bottle two nights before. So, I was able to compare this with the 2009, which was a very different year, as 2010 was a cooler year and a priori a more adequate year for long-aging wines like this Gran Reserva. The difference was the vegetative cycle, as the vinification and élevage was the same. This is sleeker and sharper, less developed and livelier than the 2009, which already shows some signs of "old wine" with aromas that remind me of the old classical Rioja reds. It has greatness and finesse and is a very attractive wine with all the stuffing and balance that is needed for a long (and positive) aging in bottle. This is one of the finest modern day vintages of Castillo Ygay. This is going to develop in the direction of the classical bottlings from yesteryear. 130,853 bottles produced. It was bottled in March 2015.

James Suckling:

Marvelous aromas of crushed berries, tobacco, cedar and mushrooms. Some dried cheese. Then turns to flowers. Very complex. Full and intense with fantastic depth and power. It goes on for minutes. It is a wine that exudes tradition but gives a sense of modernity with precise winemaking. Two years in oak, one in concrete and three or four in bottle. Drink on release and age onwards.

Decanter:

Ygay these days is a blend of Tempranilo and Mazuelo, the later making up 15% in this vintage. 2010 will be remembered in the great vineyards of Europe as a classic year, elegant restraint and wonderful harmonious balance, even in youth, its key characteristics. The Ygay fits this template perfectly; plums and sloes, hints of blueberry and cassis, then figs, cocoa and sousbois, a distinct balsamic note to underline provenance. The Mazuelo etches fresh acidity and a powerful finish, leaving the Tempranillo the opportunity to dance flamboyantly on the mid-palate, the bringer of joy and harmony.

Tim Atkin:

Produced in one of Rioja's greatest recent vintages, this is a very special Castillo Ygay that is well worth cellaring for a decade or two. Made from Tempranillo with 15% Mazuelo, both grown in La Plana at 485 metres, it's nuanced, balanced and refreshing, with the classic Murrieta combination of acidity and fine tannins, complemented by French and American oak and a core of savoury fruit. 2022-40

Wine Spectator:

Maturing well, this round red is a lovely example of the traditional style. Orange peel, dried cherry, forest floor, vanilla and black tea flavors mingle harmoniously over round tannins and citrusy acidity. Generous but gentle, lively, balanced and harmonious. Tempranillo and Mazuelo. Drink now through 2030.  —Thomas Matthews