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Vega Sicilia Unico 2008

RedSpain2008

By Daniel Min · Tasted 2020-07-20 · Published 2026-09-30 · Updated 2026-09-30

In one paragraphVega Sicilia Unico 2008 is the flagship of Bodegas Vega Sicilia in Spain's Ribera del Duero, made from Tinto Fino (Tempranillo) blended with Cabernet Sauvignon and others. The estate was founded in 1864 by Eloy Lecanda y Chaves, who had learned winemaking in Bordeaux, and has been owned by the Álvarez family since 1982. Unico is usually released about ten years after the harvest. On Vivino this vintage averages 4.7 from 2,811 ratings, the label as a whole 4.7 from 57,552, and Vivino lists a critic score of 96. Wine-Searcher's aggregate of ten critic reviews is 94, with a world average price of US$474 per 750ml (ex-tax, Sep 2026). Oak, tobacco, vanilla, leather, plum and cherry lead. I noted that it opened from the second glass and gave it a 5.

Vega Sicilia Unico 2008 bottle — my own photo, 2020.07 — Photo: Daniel Min, 2020.07 (Vivino log)

5.0

Father's rating / 5 ★★★★★

4.7

Vivino 2008 vintage average (2811 ratings)

94 / 100 (Wine-Searcher aggregate of 10 critic reviews)

US$474

World average price (Wine-Searcher)

At a glance

Producer

Bodegas Vega Sicilia

Region

Spain · Castilla y León, Ribera del Duero

Grapes

Mainly Tinto Fino (Tempranillo) + Cabernet Sauvignon and others (proportions vary by year)

Alcohol

13–14% (Vivino gives two figures)

Style

Very full-bodied, high acidity, built for long ageing (Vivino: Spanish Ribera Del Duero Red)

Drinking window (Vivino)

2013–2028

Food pairing

Beef, Lamb, Game (deer, venison)

World average price

US$474 / 750ml (Wine-Searcher world average, ex-tax, Sep 2026) · overseas retail US$215.46–1,012.08 per single 750ml bottle (UK, Hong Kong, Switzerland, Spain, Singapore and more; tax terms vary)

In one line

5.0/5 — higher than Vivino's 4.7 average · world avg price US$474 · A Spanish legend that began in 1864 with vines planted on the Duero by a man trained in Bordeaux.

Wine-Searcher aggregate of 10 critic reviews: 94. Vivino lists a critic score of 96 (added Oct 2015, publication not named). The producer describes the 2008 as mature, tremendously elegant and silky.

Market note: World average US$474 / 750ml (Wine-Searcher, ex-tax, Sep 2026). It is listed by 69 overseas sellers, with single 750ml bottles ranging widely from US$215.46 (a UK exchange) to US$1,012.08 (Spain, tax incl.). The house's Valbuena 5 is US$213 (94), Alión US$126 (93), and Unico Reserva Especial US$618 (96).

Father's note — Daniel Min

Original author of the notes

2020-07-20 5.0 ★★★★★

“My first unico 첫 아로마 부터 베리가 종류별로 진하게 다가오고 텍스쳐에서 타닌으로 살짝 재밌게 기대하게 하더니 둘째 잔부터 바로 풀림. 왜 우니꼬를 사람들이 이렇게 좋아하는지 알게 됐다. 강인한 스트럭쳐에 보르도의 장점들과 부르고뉴의 섬세한 표현을 동시에 하는 와인. 종합선물세트 마냥 한잔한잔 정말 변화와 갖가지 좋아하는 향과 맛을 느낄 수 있었다. 한가지를 파고들어 잘하기보단 다재다능한 느낌. 다음번을 기대하게 한다.”

Tidied by Haru

Show original

“My first unico 첫 아로마 부터 베리가 종류별로^^ 진하게 다가오고 텍스쳐에서 타닌으로 살짝 재밌게 기대하게 하더니~ 둘째 잔부터 바로 풀림!! 왜 우니꼬를 사람들이 이렇게 좋아하는지 알게 됬다. 강인한 스트럭쳐에 보르도의 장점들과 부르고뉴의 섬세한 표현을 동시에 하는 와인. 종합선물세트 마냥 한잔한잔 정말 변화와 갖가지 좋아하는 향과 맛을 느낄 수 있었다. 한가지를 파고들어 잘하기보단 다재다능한 느낌~~ 다음번을 기대하게 한다.”

Min Haru Aspiring sommelier Level 1 · Cork

OakEarth & leatherBlack fruitA memory from July, at twenty-one

What I learned today: some glasses open on the second pour.

Saturday. Before the first customer came in, Master Seo poured a glass of red and set it in front of me. Then, leaving the bottle standing beside it, he said: the first glass will be closed. Drink the first glass for the sake of the second. After that he said nothing for a long while.

The first glass really was closed. Cherry and plum showed and hid as if through a crack in a door, and the astringency gripped my tongue. When he poured the second, the door opened. Blackberry, raspberry, blueberry, every kind of berry pouring out at once, with tobacco, leather and cedar following. Every sip had a different face. And in that second glass opened a July night when my phone rang.

Twenty-one, around ten o'clock on the third Monday night of July. A call from Dad. You're not asleep? Put a glass out for me. That was all. When he came in about an hour later, he was holding a small glass jar wrapped in a handkerchief — one of the jam jars from Mum's bakery, washed out. Inside was about two glasses' worth of dark red wine. Dad poured half of it into my glass. The first sip was astringent and tight. Dad just smiled and told me to wait. A little later, when he poured the other half, every kind of berry bloomed in the glass at once. I couldn't say a word. At the end of the table Dad typed something on his phone for a long time. I don't know the name of the bottle. I didn't even know where the wine had come from.

I opened the notebook to that date. Only the first line is in English: "My first unico." From the first aroma, every kind of berry, intense, he wrote. From the second glass it opened right up. A wine with Bordeaux's strengths and Burgundy's finesse at once. Each glass changed, like a gift box of everything. It makes you look forward to next time. Five stars. The bottle was Vega Sicilia Unico. I stuck on the wine-name Post-it. It was a bottle Dad gave five stars.

When I set my glass down, Master Seo said it briefly. That night, that bottle was opened here. The last two glasses, your father took in a jam jar — his daughter's share, he said. Minjae, arriving late, took one sip and held out his empty glass without a word.

After closing, I wrote the name on the thirty-second page of the new notebook. In the aroma column: 'every kind of berry, a jam jar, a phone call at ten'. What I learned today: some glasses open on the second pour. And where Dad was that night — I only found out today.

Haru — Saturday, before the first customer. 'Drink the first glass for the sake of the second.' — **Haru** Saturday, before the first customer. 'Drink the first glass for the sake of the second.'

What this wine is

In 1864 Eloy Lecanda y Chaves, who had learned about wine in Bordeaux, founded an estate on the banks of the Duero in Castile. He brought Bordeaux varieties — Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec — and planted them beside the local Tinto Fino (Tempranillo). According to the American wine merchant Vinfolio, he at first made brandy rather than wine, and died in 1894 without seeing the estate make its name.

Under the owners who followed, winemaker Domingo 'Txomin' Garramiola introduced Bordeaux-style barrel ageing and bottling on the estate, and the first Unico was the 1915 vintage, Vinfolio says. Named 'Unico' — the only one — the wine soon became the wine of Spain's aristocracy. In 1982 the Álvarez family bought the estate, the same year Ribera del Duero was granted its Denominación de Origen (Wikipedia, Vinfolio). The family later reached as far as Oremus in Hungary's Tokaj.

Unico is aged at length in barrels, large vats and bottle, and is usually released about ten years after the harvest. The blend is around 80% Tinto Fino, the rest mainly Cabernet Sauvignon (Wikipedia); one retailer lists the 2008 as 85% Tinto Fino, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Merlot. At the bottom of Dad's photo of the label you can see the bottle's individual number and the signature of 'La Presidenta'.

Haru — Twenty-one, eleven o'clock on a Monday night in July. Dad pours the wine he carried home in a handkerchief-wrapped jam jar into Haru's glass. — **Haru** Twenty-one, eleven o'clock on a Monday night in July. Dad pours the wine he carried home in a handkerchief-wrapped jam jar into Haru's glass.

What the world says

The ten critic reviews gathered on Wine-Searcher aggregate to 94. Vivino lists a critic score of 96 (added Oct 2015). The producer describes the 2008 as mature, tremendously elegant and silky.

On Vivino the 2008 averages 4.7 from 2,811 ratings: 1,669 fives, 1,029 fours and 85 threes — more than half gave it five. The label as a whole averages 4.7 from 57,552, and of the 58 recorded vintages, 1962, 1995, 1996 and others top out at 4.8. The suggested window is 2013–2028.

Oak, tobacco and vanilla lead the aroma mentions (2,344), followed by leather, earth and smoke (1,276), plum and blackberry (1,269), cherry and raspberry (644), and licorice, pepper and mint (477). Structure: intensity 3.8, acidity 3.7, tannin 3.4, sweetness 1.8. Many say it is big yet, thanks to its acidity, never feels heavy.

"Still at the tasting and this is one of the stars tonight!" — Vivino review, Aug 2016, 5

Master Seo — 'That night, that bottle was opened here.' For the first time, Master Seo tells the story of that night. — **Master Seo** 'That night, that bottle was opened here.' For the first time, Master Seo tells the story of that night.

How I drank it

July 20, 2020, 5 stars. I wrote the first line of the note in English. It was my first Unico.

From the first aroma, every kind of berry came on intensely. On the texture, the tannin teased a little, building expectation — and from the second glass it opened right up. I understood why people love Unico so much. A wine with a powerful structure that carries Bordeaux's strengths and Burgundy's delicate expression at once. Like a gift box, it changed glass by glass, giving me all kinds of aromas and flavours I love. It feels versatile rather than digging deep into one thing. It makes me look forward to next time.

My 5 is above the Vivino average of 4.7. With more than half giving it five, I stood with the majority. The day before, I'd given Michael David Freakshow Zinfandel 2017 a 3.5. I opened this bottle right in the middle of Vivino's suggested window (2013–2028).

Minjae — Minjae, arriving late, takes one sip and holds out his empty glass without a word. — **Minjae** Minjae, arriving late, takes one sip and holds out his empty glass without a word.

Where this wine shows up

History The Álvarez purchase and the Ribera del Duero DO · 1982

In 1982 the Álvarez family bought Vega Sicilia. The same year, Ribera del Duero was granted Spain's Denominación de Origen (DO) status.

Wikipedia — Vega Sicilia · Vinfolio — Vega Sicilia: a Spanish wine icon

Artwork and stills are not reproduced for copyright reasons; scenes are summarised.

Vivino community data

2008 vintage rating distribution (2811 ratings, average 4.7)

5★		1669 (59%)
4★		1029 (37%)
3★		85 (3%)
2★		12 (0%)
1★		16 (1%)

Most-mentioned aromas

Family	Mentions	Top keywords
Oak	2344	oak 554 · tobacco 429 · vanilla 406 · chocolate 232 · cedar 178
Earth & leather	1276	leather 497 · earthy 173 · smoke 160 · balsamic 64 · cocoa 48
Black fruit	1269	plum 281 · blackberry 208 · black fruit 190 · blackcurrant 121 · dark fruit 109
Red fruit	644	cherry 290 · red fruit 107 · raspberry 85 · strawberry 49 · red cherry 27
Spice	477	licorice 122 · pepper 85 · mint 83 · cinnamon 46 · savory 32

Structure: Acidity 3.7/5 · Intensity 3.8/5 · Tannin 3.4/5 · Sweetness 1.8/5

Average by vintage (all vintages: 57552 ratings, average 4.7)

Vintage	Average	Ratings
1941	4.6	40
1948	4.2	33
1951	4.7	43
1953	4.7	112
1959	4.6	33
1960	4.6	380
1961	4.6	63
1962	4.8	388
1964	4.6	245
1965	4.6	269
1966	4.6	119
1967	4.6	145
1968	4.7	261
1969	4.4	69
1970	4.8	500
1972	4.6	145
1973	4.6	207
1974	4.7	212
1975	4.7	139
1976	4.6	305
1979	4.7	149
1980	4.7	141
1981	4.7	369
1982	4.7	237
1983	4.6	144
1985	4.7	312
1986	4.7	368
1987	4.7	716
1989	4.7	819
1990	4.7	837
1991	4.7	1285
1993	4.4	33
1994	4.7	1138
1995	4.8	1114
1996	4.8	1594
1997	4.6	124
1998	4.7	1404
1999	4.7	1984
2000	4.7	3496
2001	4.7	101
2002	4.7	1337
2003	4.7	2653
2004	4.7	3627
2005	4.7	4117
2006	4.7	3636
2007	4.7	3311
2008	4.7	2811
2009	4.7	2651
2010	4.7	2432
2011	4.7	2374
2012	4.7	1873
2013	4.7	1492
2014	4.6	1365
2015	4.7	627
2016	4.7	184
2017	4.8	45
2019	4.7	34
2020	4.8	40

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Frequently asked questions

What kind of wine is Vega Sicilia Unico?

The flagship of Vega Sicilia in Spain's Ribera del Duero, built on Tinto Fino (Tempranillo) with Cabernet Sauvignon and others. It is usually aged about ten years before release. The 2008 averages 4.7 on Vivino (2,811 ratings) with a Wine-Searcher critic aggregate of 94.

How much does it cost?

Wine-Searcher's world average is US$474 per 750ml (ex-tax, Sep 2026). Single 750ml bottles abroad range from US$215.46 to US$1,012.08 depending on seller and tax terms.

What food goes with it?

The Vivino community suggests beef, lamb and game such as venison. Since the first glass can be closed, many open it ahead or decant it.

What does 'Unico' mean?

Spanish for 'the only one' or 'unique'. It is the name of Vega Sicilia's longest-aged flagship, whose first vintage is said to be 1915.

Links & sources

View on Vivino · Prices on Wine-Searcher

Vega Sicilia Unico 2008

At a glance

In one line

Father's note — Daniel Min

What this wine is

What the world says

How I drank it

Where this wine shows up

Vivino community data

2008 vintage rating distribution (2811 ratings, average 4.7)

Most-mentioned aromas

Average by vintage (all vintages: 57552 ratings, average 4.7)

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