Muga Rioja Reserva 2019
Price: $28.95
Channel: LCBO Vintages
Producer: Bodegas Muga
Country: Spain
Region: La Rioja
Appellation: Rioja DO
Grapes: Tempranillo, Garnacha Tinta, Mazuelo, Graciano
Alcohol by Volume: 14.5%
Sugar Content: 3 grams per litre
The British wine writer, and Spanish wine expert, Tim Atkin MW calls the 2018 Muga Reserva “textbook”. That is a much more intersting way of saying classic, which was my note when I tasted it earlier this year. The Muga Reserva is one of the LCBO’s ‘Vintages Essentials”, which means it is more widely available and ordered continually. As such the 2019 vintage is rolling into Ontario and replacing the 2018, but you might find a bottle of the older wine here or there.
The 2019 Reserva is also textbook and classic. To put the words Reserva on a bottle of Rioja, the wine must be aged for a minimum of three years. In the case of the Muga, that means two years in in an 80% to 20% French to American oak. I haven’t managed to find out the combination of new to old oak used, but there’s enough new and American oak to make its presence known in the glass. There is also a ton of black and blue fruit in this wine, which has no trouble balancing the wood seasoning. It’s big and juicy and grown-up; a refreshing call back to a style that has gone out of fashion but never really went away. Perfect for a Sunday roast.
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