3 bottles per lot
Details
Vega Sicilia
In a ranking of the world's leading top quality wines Vega Sicilia would surely be listed in the top 20, and number one in Spain. This unique estate has produced benchmark wine since its first release in 1915.
History
Though the founding date of Bodega Vega Sicilia is 1864, it all started a little earlier in 1859 when Don Elroy Lecanda's father gave him an estate made of 2 adjacent parcels of land in Valbuena de Duero, one of them being Vega Sicilia. Before Don Elroy's arrival the estate was devoted to livestock husbandry and production of cereals. Elroy admired the great wines of Bordeaux, and bought 18,000 cuttings of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Carmenre and Pinot Noir from Beguerie & Co. Of these varietals, only Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec remain. The offspring of the original vines have adapted themselves well to the soil and climate in Ribera del Duero.
By 1890 the Lecanda family was forced to sell the majority of shares to the Herrero family. During this period, the bodega was first known as Bodegas de Lecanda, only in the early 20thcentury becoming Bodega Vega Sicilia. During the last decade of the 19th-century the family decided to lease the bodega to the Palacio family for 10 years. From 1901 on, all the wine made at the estate was shipped to the other wineries of the family, probably ending up in a Rioja blend under the Palacio label.
In 1905, the Palacio family hired Txomin Garramiola to look after the vinification and bring out the true potential of the estate. It was under his direction that Vega Sicilia began to develop the quality it eventually became famous for. When the lease came to an end, Txomin was hired by the Herreros to continue his job. 1915 was the first vintage bottled under the Vega Sicilia name. In a way, Txomin is the godfather of the Vega Sicilia we know today.
The Vega Sicilia wines achieved great acclaim in the 1920s. In this early period of estate bottled wines, Vega Sicilia made its reputation as one of the greatest wines in the world. The bodega changed ownership again in 1952 and 1966 until it finally came in the capable hands of the Alvarez family in 1982.
Up until the late 1970s most wines were sold to a selective group of wealthy private clients and some restaurants in Madrid. Therefore, old bottles of Unico are hard to find.
Of the wines produced at the bodega, Unico is the wine for which Vega Sicilia is most known. A Gran Reserva only released when of the finest quality, Unico spends a minimum of 4 years in cask and 3 years in bottle, though exact times vary vintage to vintage. For instance, the 1970 was aged for 16 years in cask and only released in 1995. The magnums of 1970 were not released until 2000. The varietal blend of Unico varies little over the years and mostly about 70 Tinto Fino, 20 Cabernet Sauvignon, 5 Merlot and 5 Malbec.
Unico Bianco
There are only 4 released vintages of Unico bianco: 1925, 1938, 1947 and 1950. Unico Bianco was made from the Albillo varietal. Until the Alavarez family took over the bodega, a small portion of white grapes were used in the Unico blend. Now all white vines are replaced by red varieties.
The history of this collection
About 2 years ago, the current owner, a noted connoisseur of Vega Sicilia, was asked to buy a large collection of old Unico, including legendary bottles from the 1920s. Thinking it was too good to be true, he quickly arranged a meeting with the owners to have a better look.
The collection was in the region of Madrid and belonged to a noble Spanish family. The father of the current owner was a politician with a passion for fine wine, especially Vega Sicilia. After he passed away, his wine collection was left untouched for several decades. The original wine cellar consisted of about 450 bottles, with more than half from the period 1918-1929.
As can be expected in a big collection of older wines the conditions of the wines were mixed, but a good number of them were in extraordinary condition. After inspection of the collection and tasting of some of the bottles, our consignor knew this was a one-time opportunity and arranged to purchase this great collection.
In order to preserve these rare bottles, the new owner contacted Vega Sicilia to request a reconditioning. The cellarmaster, Mr. Xavier Ausas, was also surprised to see such an amazing collection of historic Unico. Later, he admitted that if they had known about this collection, the winery would have gladly bought back all bottles for their library.
In February 2013, all wines were checked and tasted by the Vega Sicilia owner and cellar master, Don Pablo Alvarez and Mr. Xavier Ausas, before being accepted for reconditioning. Only the best bottles were put up for a reconditioning. Any bottle that did not met the quality level was rejected and destroyed. So only similar quality bottles were used for topping up. The whole reconditioning was done under the supervision of a Spanish notary, Ms. Begona Jovellarand.
Each bottle was thoroughly checked by Mr. Ausas before being recorked with a new branded cork with the vintage and recorking date on it. The bottles were relabeled with a duplicate of the original label and a back label signed by the notary. Each bottle was packed in its own vintage branded Vega Sicilia single bottle wooden case.
A total of 220 bottles were reconditioned. Vega Sicilia offered to buy back a large part of these reconditioned wines for their own library, as even for them these vintages were rare.
The owner decided to keep some of the collection for his private cellar and offer the rest for sale at Christie's, to offer other wine enthusiasts a chance of acquiring a piece of Vega Sicilia history.
Christie's held the first auction of wines coming directly from the Vega Sicilia wine cellars in 1989 and is proud to continue now with this very rare offer of historic Vega Sicilia Unico.
On 25 May Christie's will also offer a small range of Unico wines from this collection in Hong Kong.
Edwin Vos, International Senior Specialist, February 2014
Vega Sicilia Unico 1920
Ribera del Duero
Levels: one upper shoulder, one mid upper shoulder, one mid low shoulder; original capsules, corks and label, Spanish paper strip seals, bin soiled and creased labels
3 bottles per lot
In a ranking of the world's leading top quality wines Vega Sicilia would surely be listed in the top 20, and number one in Spain. This unique estate has produced benchmark wine since its first release in 1915.
History
Though the founding date of Bodega Vega Sicilia is 1864, it all started a little earlier in 1859 when Don Elroy Lecanda's father gave him an estate made of 2 adjacent parcels of land in Valbuena de Duero, one of them being Vega Sicilia. Before Don Elroy's arrival the estate was devoted to livestock husbandry and production of cereals. Elroy admired the great wines of Bordeaux, and bought 18,000 cuttings of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Carmenre and Pinot Noir from Beguerie & Co. Of these varietals, only Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec remain. The offspring of the original vines have adapted themselves well to the soil and climate in Ribera del Duero.
By 1890 the Lecanda family was forced to sell the majority of shares to the Herrero family. During this period, the bodega was first known as Bodegas de Lecanda, only in the early 20thcentury becoming Bodega Vega Sicilia. During the last decade of the 19th-century the family decided to lease the bodega to the Palacio family for 10 years. From 1901 on, all the wine made at the estate was shipped to the other wineries of the family, probably ending up in a Rioja blend under the Palacio label.
In 1905, the Palacio family hired Txomin Garramiola to look after the vinification and bring out the true potential of the estate. It was under his direction that Vega Sicilia began to develop the quality it eventually became famous for. When the lease came to an end, Txomin was hired by the Herreros to continue his job. 1915 was the first vintage bottled under the Vega Sicilia name. In a way, Txomin is the godfather of the Vega Sicilia we know today.
The Vega Sicilia wines achieved great acclaim in the 1920s. In this early period of estate bottled wines, Vega Sicilia made its reputation as one of the greatest wines in the world. The bodega changed ownership again in 1952 and 1966 until it finally came in the capable hands of the Alvarez family in 1982.
Up until the late 1970s most wines were sold to a selective group of wealthy private clients and some restaurants in Madrid. Therefore, old bottles of Unico are hard to find.
Of the wines produced at the bodega, Unico is the wine for which Vega Sicilia is most known. A Gran Reserva only released when of the finest quality, Unico spends a minimum of 4 years in cask and 3 years in bottle, though exact times vary vintage to vintage. For instance, the 1970 was aged for 16 years in cask and only released in 1995. The magnums of 1970 were not released until 2000. The varietal blend of Unico varies little over the years and mostly about 70 Tinto Fino, 20 Cabernet Sauvignon, 5 Merlot and 5 Malbec.
Unico Bianco
There are only 4 released vintages of Unico bianco: 1925, 1938, 1947 and 1950. Unico Bianco was made from the Albillo varietal. Until the Alavarez family took over the bodega, a small portion of white grapes were used in the Unico blend. Now all white vines are replaced by red varieties.
The history of this collection
About 2 years ago, the current owner, a noted connoisseur of Vega Sicilia, was asked to buy a large collection of old Unico, including legendary bottles from the 1920s. Thinking it was too good to be true, he quickly arranged a meeting with the owners to have a better look.
The collection was in the region of Madrid and belonged to a noble Spanish family. The father of the current owner was a politician with a passion for fine wine, especially Vega Sicilia. After he passed away, his wine collection was left untouched for several decades. The original wine cellar consisted of about 450 bottles, with more than half from the period 1918-1929.
As can be expected in a big collection of older wines the conditions of the wines were mixed, but a good number of them were in extraordinary condition. After inspection of the collection and tasting of some of the bottles, our consignor knew this was a one-time opportunity and arranged to purchase this great collection.
In order to preserve these rare bottles, the new owner contacted Vega Sicilia to request a reconditioning. The cellarmaster, Mr. Xavier Ausas, was also surprised to see such an amazing collection of historic Unico. Later, he admitted that if they had known about this collection, the winery would have gladly bought back all bottles for their library.
In February 2013, all wines were checked and tasted by the Vega Sicilia owner and cellar master, Don Pablo Alvarez and Mr. Xavier Ausas, before being accepted for reconditioning. Only the best bottles were put up for a reconditioning. Any bottle that did not met the quality level was rejected and destroyed. So only similar quality bottles were used for topping up. The whole reconditioning was done under the supervision of a Spanish notary, Ms. Begona Jovellarand.
Each bottle was thoroughly checked by Mr. Ausas before being recorked with a new branded cork with the vintage and recorking date on it. The bottles were relabeled with a duplicate of the original label and a back label signed by the notary. Each bottle was packed in its own vintage branded Vega Sicilia single bottle wooden case.
A total of 220 bottles were reconditioned. Vega Sicilia offered to buy back a large part of these reconditioned wines for their own library, as even for them these vintages were rare.
The owner decided to keep some of the collection for his private cellar and offer the rest for sale at Christie's, to offer other wine enthusiasts a chance of acquiring a piece of Vega Sicilia history.
Christie's held the first auction of wines coming directly from the Vega Sicilia wine cellars in 1989 and is proud to continue now with this very rare offer of historic Vega Sicilia Unico.
On 25 May Christie's will also offer a small range of Unico wines from this collection in Hong Kong.
Edwin Vos, International Senior Specialist, February 2014
Vega Sicilia Unico 1920
Ribera del Duero
Levels: one upper shoulder, one mid upper shoulder, one mid low shoulder; original capsules, corks and label, Spanish paper strip seals, bin soiled and creased labels
3 bottles per lot
Brought to you by
Per Holmberg