2021 GREAT WINES OF THE WORLD MASTERCLASSES

UNDERSTANDING CLASSIC RIOJA: THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CRIANZA, RESERVA AND GRAN RESERVA

Masterclass Tasting with JamesSuckling.com

Sep 8, 2021 (Wednesday); 5 p.m. – 6 p.m.

@ James Suckling Wine Central

(8 wines to taste) / HK$428 per person

Join this special wine tasting masterclass and roundtable conversation hosted and presented by the global JamesSuckling.com tasting team!

Rioja is perhaps the most internationally-recognized, popular and organized wine region in Spain. Producing consistently great wines decade after decade, it has its own classification system reflecting quality and complexity. Rioja is not a uniform style but rather a variety of profiles, with variations in terroir from three distinct areas, a range of varieties in the blend and differing maturation styles. Learn more about this region through a tasting of three of the leading wineries of the appellation and unveil the differences between Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva Rioja.

Featured Producers

Bodegas Muga

Bodegas Muga is a family-run firm founded in 1932 by Isaac Muga and Aurora Cano. The first wines were made in an underground cellar, until in 1968 they decided to set up their own winery in a beautiful old 19th-century townhouse situated in the emblematic train station area in the town of Haro. With its own on-site cooperage with one Master Cooper and three assistant coopers, it is the only winery in Spain making all its own vats and barrels. The winery remains true to traditional winemaking methods such as racking the casks by gravity and fining the wine with fresh egg whites.

Grupo Faustino

Old and glorious Riojas are what the Faustino winery may be best known for with their special dark frosted bottles, but it’s a dynamic name in the Spanish wine world at large with its other wine holdings in Navarre, La Mancha and Ribera del Duero. We have been impressed with both the new and old bottlings from Rioja that offer a subtle richness and complexity that highlight the history of the winery, which was established in 1861 by Eleuterio Martinez Arzok when he purchased the palace and vineyards.

Marqués de Murrieta 

Marques de Murrieta – directly connected to the history of Rioja wine – was responsible for importing production techniques into Spain from Bordeaux. Located at the heart of La Rioja, the estate is home to Ygay Castle, headquarters of the Marques de Murrieta wineries and surrounded by 300 hectares of vineyards. With the help of his young, highly skilled team, Vicente D. Cebrian-Sagarriga, the Count of Creixell and current chairman of Marques de Murrieta, is creating wines of character and depth, that are also full of history.

List of Wines

• Muga Rioja Prado Enea Gran Reserva 2010 99 pts
• Muga Rioja Reserva 2010 (not yet rated)
• Muga Rioja Selección Especial 2010 96 pts
• Faustino Crianza 2010 (not yet rated)
• Faustino V Reserva 2010 (not yet rated)
• Faustino I Gran Reserva 2010 94 pts
• Marqués de Murrieta Rioja Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial 2010 99 pts
• Marqués de Murrieta Rioja Reserva 2010 95 pts

This masterclass tasting at James Suckling Wine Central is part of the 2021 Great Wines of the World Tasting Month “Autumn Edition” – a series of curated tasting events featuring close to 100 of the world’s greatest producers and their top-scoring wines. Check out the full line-up of all masterclass tastings and other programs during the tasting month at: www.jamessuckling.com/event/great-wines-world-2021-masterclasses

Book your ticket now to reserve your seat!

For question or enquiries, contact us at eventsAsia@jamessuckling.com or via phone at 2539 7999.