Montecillo Reserva 2014
Track record and credibility
Bodegas Montecillo is one of the pioneering wineries in Spain and the third oldest in Rioja after Marqués de Murrieta and Marqués de Riscal. Its wines enjoy a magnificent market position, such as Montecillo Reserva. Remaining true to its essence, this classic has been gradually updated to adapt it to consumers’ tastes, with a fruitier profile with well-integrated flavours from the wood. Montecillo Reserva 2014 is expressive and ready to be enjoyed, elegant and matured to perfection following a long period of ageing in the winery. A pure delight.
General information
The 2013 vintage of Montecillo Reserva was ranked 25th among Wine Spectator’s prestigious TOP 100 wines of 2020, the list it draws up every year. Now it’s the turn of Montecillo Reserva 2014, from a vintage that required the winery to carry out an exhaustive selection at the vineyard to meet its quality standards, reducing the production by 30%. It’s made from Tempranillo (92%) with a touch of Mazuelo (8%) and the grapes come from the Rioja Alta subzone.
The Tempranillo vineyards are distributed among the municipalities of Fuenmayor, Cuzcurrita, Huércanos, and Hormilla. They are 30 years old on average and are gobelet-trained and dry-farmed in different types of soil, chiefly calcareous clay and poor in organic matter. The Mazuelo comes from Medrano, where the vines are more than 50 years old and grow in sandy soils with a higher concentration of organic matter and good drainage. Each variety was harvested and vinified separately. Following alcoholic fermentation in stainless steel tanks, the wine underwent malolactic fermentation in underground cement vats. It was aged in French and American oak barrels, the Tempranillo for 24 months and the Mazuelo for 22.
Bodegas Montecillo was founded in 1874 by Celestino Navajas. Its wines enjoy a good market position, pursuing a line without drastic changes that lends them credibility. The firm is based in the heart of Rioja Alta, in Fuenmayor, and produces its wine from a selection of the best vineyards in the subzone. Mastery of long ageing periods is one of its main distinguishing features. The wines are matured in perfect conditions in the firm’s underground cellar.
Montecillo Reserva 2014 (D.O.Ca. Rioja) is perfect with beef carpaccio or medallions of Ibérico pork in a mustard sauce.
Creators’ opinion
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Clean, bright and expressive ruby-red colour with medium-high pigmentation and very fluid in the glass. Classy, elegant and greatly changing nose. Initial notes of fine woods, mahogany and bay leaf, followed by jammy red fruit mixed with mineral notes. Silky-smooth palate, beautifully polished and velvety tannins. Exquisite acidity that envelops the notes of wood and ripe fruit with superb overall balance. Long finish, pure enjoyment.
"
General features
General information
The 2013 vintage of Montecillo Reserva was ranked 25th among Wine Spectator’s prestigious TOP 100 wines of 2020, the list it draws up every year. Now it’s the turn of Montecillo Reserva 2014, from a vintage that required the winery to carry out an exhaustive selection at the vineyard to meet its quality standards, reducing the production by 30%. It’s made from Tempranillo (92%) with a touch of Mazuelo (8%) and the grapes come from the Rioja Alta subzone.
The Tempranillo vineyards are distributed among the municipalities of Fuenmayor, Cuzcurrita, Huércanos, and Hormilla. They are 30 years old on average and are gobelet-trained and dry-farmed in different types of soil, chiefly calcareous clay and poor in organic matter. The Mazuelo comes from Medrano, where the vines are more than 50 years old and grow in sandy soils with a higher concentration of organic matter and good drainage. Each variety was harvested and vinified separately. Following alcoholic fermentation in stainless steel tanks, the wine underwent malolactic fermentation in underground cement vats. It was aged in French and American oak barrels, the Tempranillo for 24 months and the Mazuelo for 22.
Bodegas Montecillo was founded in 1874 by Celestino Navajas. Its wines enjoy a good market position, pursuing a line without drastic changes that lends them credibility. The firm is based in the heart of Rioja Alta, in Fuenmayor, and produces its wine from a selection of the best vineyards in the subzone. Mastery of long ageing periods is one of its main distinguishing features. The wines are matured in perfect conditions in the firm’s underground cellar.
Montecillo Reserva 2014 (D.O.Ca. Rioja) is perfect with beef carpaccio or medallions of Ibérico pork in a mustard sauce.
Creators’ opinion
"
Clean, bright and expressive ruby-red colour with medium-high pigmentation and very fluid in the glass. Classy, elegant and greatly changing nose. Initial notes of fine woods, mahogany and bay leaf, followed by jammy red fruit mixed with mineral notes. Silky-smooth palate, beautifully polished and velvety tannins. Exquisite acidity that envelops the notes of wood and ripe fruit with superb overall balance. Long finish, pure enjoyment.
"