2000 Spain

After a growing season which avoided the excesses sometimes associated with this region, and an October harvest under clear skies, expectations were certainly high. Not without justification, it transpires, a decade down the line. The usual encyclopaedic descriptors borrow widely from the gustatory canon and are complemented by an impressive structure, with balancing acidity and very precise and focused tannins both evidenced. The blend is 93% Tinto Fino and 7% Cabernet Sauvignon; the interplay of black fruits, truffles and spice is impressive indeed and will continue to impress for a very long time.
(Simon Field MW, BBR Buyer, May 2011) The 2000 Unico is made up of 93% Tinto Fino (aka Tempranillo) and 7% Cabernet Sauvignon. 2000 is seen as a great vintage, as in Bordeaux. The complexity of the wine is underpinned by a long growing season and the fact that the harvest only began on October 14th! Indeed 40% of the crop was 'green harvested', such was the aspiration for concentration in those grapes permitted to go the distance!

The final yields were a parsimonious 20 hl/ha. The complicated ageing regime involved, as usual, various containers of differing shapes and sizes. By my calculations the wine had nearly seven years in vat ( including 2 years in small new barrels and 15 months in semi-new barrels) and then was held in bottle before release in 2009.

The rich crimson colour leads to a rich and spicy palate with generous black fruit, clove and pepper spice and a rich almost savoury finish. Javier and Pablo compare it to 1996, 1994, 1986 and 1970, all of which are drinking beautifully now in various stages of their evolution. An elegant and very successful vintage.
(Simon Field MW, BBR Buyer)