Muga Reserva

In the glass

Aroma: red cherry, vanilla, dried herb, cedar

Palate: red fruit, sweet spice, fine tannin, savoury

The house's calling-card Reserva, fermented in oak vats and aged in barrel; balanced, savoury and traditional, a benchmark mid-priced Rioja.

What it pairs with

• Cordero asado al sarmiento
  Vine-shoot-roasted suckling lamb is the canonical Rioja match; the wine's resolved tannins frame the sweet fat.
• Chuleton de buey a la brasa Find chuleton de buey a la brasa on TableJourney →
  A thick aged-beef chop over embers meets the wine's savoury oak and grip.
• Jamon iberico
  Cured Iberian ham echoes the wine's dried-cherry and leather register.

History

The Muga Reserva is the house's core red and one of the most recognisable Rioja Reservas internationally, made in a traditional style with the bodega's own cooperage.

1. 1932 — Bodegas Muga founded and the Reserva style established

Facts

Producer

Bodegas Muga

Grapes

Tempranillo (70%), Garnacha (20%), Mazuelo (7%), Graciano (3%)

Classification

DOCa Rioja

Oak

Around 24 months in oak, with racking and fining done in the traditional way

ABV

14.0%

Price

EUR 18 to 28 at retail

Drinking window

4 to 18 from vintage

First vintage

1932

Scores

• Tim Atkin 92 (2018 vintage, reviewed 2022)

Tags