1986 Marques de Murrieta Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Blanco

A legend among fine white wines, the 1986 Marqués de Murrieta Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Blanco is widely regarded as one of the greatest white wines ever produced in Spain—and one of the most remarkable whites in the world. Crafted primarily from old-vine Viura with a touch of Malvasía and aged for decades before release, it represents the very peak of traditional Rioja Blanco. Awarded a perfect 100 points by Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate—the first Spanish white wine ever to do so—this wine has already written itself into vinous history.

Tasting Notes
In the glass, this extraordinary Gran Reserva Blanco shows a deep, burnished golden hue with brilliant clarity, a visual clue to its long, patient élevage and remarkable concentration. The nose is initially subtle and restrained, slowly unfolding with air to reveal layers of spice, dried flowers, citrus peel, chamomile, quince, dried apricot, roasted nuts, and delicate hints of beeswax and incense. Undertones of honeycomb, saline minerality, and fine oak spice add further complexity with each swirl. On the palate, the wine is both powerful and supremely elegant, with a seamless texture and an energy that belies its age. A vibrant, almost shocking freshness of acidity cuts through its creamy, glycerol-rich body, carrying flavors of baked orchard fruits, citrus oil, quince paste, dried tropical fruit, and savory herbs over a profound mineral backbone. The finish is extraordinarily long, refined, and harmonious, lingering with notes of spice, dried fruit, and wet stone for minutes. Despite its long maturation, it remains astonishingly youthful and stable in the glass, with proven capacity to stay fresh even days after opening. With an already legendary track record—older vintages have shown beautifully after nearly a century—this 1986 has a potential drinking window of 50+ years from release.

Production
Castillo Ygay Blanco Gran Reserva Especial 1986 is sourced from a single historic vineyard planted in 1945, located at around 485 meters above sea level in the highest part of the Ygay estate in Rioja Alta. This elevated, Atlantic-influenced site, with its poor, limestone- and clay-based soils, naturally limits yields and concentrates the character of the Viura (97%) and Malvasía (3%), endowing the wine with its hallmark freshness and minerality. After hand-harvesting and careful selection, the wine underwent an extraordinarily long maturation: 252 months (21 years) in 225-liter American oak barriques, followed by 67 months in concrete tanks to integrate and refine its components. It was then bottled and held for more than three additional years in the estate cellars, only being released nearly 30 years after harvest, in March 2015, as a fully formed but still remarkably youthful expression of classic, long-lived Rioja Blanco.

Food & Serving
This is a contemplative, collector-level wine that shines at the table with refined, richly flavored dishes. It pairs beautifully with roasted turbot or halibut, lobster with butter and herbs, scallops, grilled monkfish, and mature seafood stews, as well as roast chicken, Bresse poultry, veal sweetbreads, and dishes featuring morels or truffles. Aged firm cheeses, such as Comté, Manchego Curado, or aged Idiazábal, also make superb partners. Serve slightly cool, ideally around 12–14°C (54–57°F), rather than fridge-cold, to allow its complex aromatics to express fully. Decanting 30–60 minutes before serving is recommended, as the wine can seem shy at first and blossoms wonderfully with exposure to air.

Producer
Founded in 1852, Marqués de Murrieta is the oldest winery in Rioja and one of the estates most responsible for defining the region’s classical style. Based at the iconic Ygay estate in Rioja Alta, the bodega has long championed age-worthy, terroir-driven wines, both red and white, that marry traditional methods with meticulous viticulture. Under the stewardship of the Cebrián-Sagarriga family and Count Vicente Cebrián-Sagarriga, Marqués de Murrieta has reasserted itself as a reference point for Spanish fine wine, with Castillo Ygay as its crowning emblem. In a historic tasting organized by The Wine Advocate, multiple vintages of Castillo Ygay Blanco—1919, 1932, and 1986—each received 100 points, making the label the only one in the world to achieve three perfect scores in a single vertical tasting and underscoring its unique place in the global fine wine landscape.

We deliver within 2 - 6 business days. You can choose whether it should be to a parcel shop or home delivery. Free delivery to both parcel shops and your front door. Our store partners primarily use GLS, DPD, UPS and DHL for deliveries. We cover deliveries to the majority of countries in Europe.