A family-owned winery that was founded in 1932, Bodegas Muga is one of the grand crus of Spain's famous Rioja region according to Master of Wine, Tim Atkin. Stylistically among the "more modern of the traditionalists," they're in a sweet spot for most wine lovers, which is why their calling card Rioja Reserva bottling is one of Spain's best-sellers. The latest edition from the outstanding 2021 vintage is one of the most exciting we've had, worthy of stocking up on a few extra bottles! In fact, after Wine Spectator named it their Wine Value of the Year for 2025, our initial allotment sold out. The good news is that we managed to get another drop, and it's still at the value price of $29.98!
Rioja's long, cool 2021 growing season gave the wine a concentrated dark-red fruit character while maintaining the compelling freshness and elegance that the mountain foothills are known for. With 2 years in small oak barrels (mostly French, some American), there are the toasty spices, roasted coffee, and warm, rich balsam accents that are signatures of classic Rioja. The velvet fruit texture gives way to a swirl of soft, fine-grained tannins that gently ground the wine. This is a wine that's not only a pleasure to drink now, but one that will only become more charming with age, so feel free to hold onto some bottles for another 5-10 years!
PRACTICING ORGANIC FARMING
Tempranillo and Garnacha, with Mazuelo and Graciano.
#1 Wine Value of the Year 2025,' Wine Spectator: - "[$39 list] This is fresh and minerally up front, opening to reveal a fine mesh of chopped cherry and plum skin flavors, with fragrant hints of ground coffee, smoked paprika and dried marjoram. Sculpted tannins define the long, slightly chewy finish. Tempranillo, Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano. Drink now through 2035."
WINE ADVOCATE 94 POINTS - "The grapes for the 2021 Reserva (sold as Crianza in Spain), mostly Tempranillo with some Garnacha Tinta, Mazuelo and Graciano, were picked late in a cooler year when they finished the harvest the 20th of October, with plenty of times for the grapes to develop full aromas and flavors and complete ripeness. It fermented destemmed and lightly crushed in oak vats with indigenous yeasts, separating qualities, villages and soils, and matured in 80% French and 20% American oak barrels, 20% of them new, for 24 months, with racking every eight to nine months. It's a textbook example of their style in a very good year, with power, concentration and clout, elegance and freshness. It was a very harmonious year; the cycle was long and the tannins ripened to perfection. It's terrific and more so for the volume they produce (984,000 bottles of it). It was fined with egg whites and bottled in January 2024. Drink 2025-2040."
JEB DUNNUCK 94 POINTS - "The winery’s flagship, the wine that introduced Muga to the world, the 2021 Muga Reserva is Tempranillo-dominant, with Garnacha, Mazuelo, and Graciano filling in the gaps. A larger-production wine, it offers tremendous quality, fermented in wooden vats using indigenous yeasts, the grapes separated by quality, soil type, and village origin. This one in particular is from a beautiful vintage and practically beams in full-bodied concentration, with supple, silky tannins and light touches of oak spice, cedar, balsamic, and white pepper. A new release, it should continue to thrive another 15-20 years. Drink 2025-2045."
Rioja's long, cool 2021 growing season gave the wine a concentrated dark-red fruit character while maintaining the compelling freshness and elegance that the mountain foothills are known for. With 2 years in small oak barrels (mostly French, some American), there are the toasty spices, roasted coffee, and warm, rich balsam accents that are signatures of classic Rioja. The velvet fruit texture gives way to a swirl of soft, fine-grained tannins that gently ground the wine. This is a wine that's not only a pleasure to drink now, but one that will only become more charming with age, so feel free to hold onto some bottles for another 5-10 years!
PRACTICING ORGANIC FARMING
Tempranillo and Garnacha, with Mazuelo and Graciano.
#1 Wine Value of the Year 2025,' Wine Spectator: - "[$39 list] This is fresh and minerally up front, opening to reveal a fine mesh of chopped cherry and plum skin flavors, with fragrant hints of ground coffee, smoked paprika and dried marjoram. Sculpted tannins define the long, slightly chewy finish. Tempranillo, Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano. Drink now through 2035."
WINE ADVOCATE 94 POINTS - "The grapes for the 2021 Reserva (sold as Crianza in Spain), mostly Tempranillo with some Garnacha Tinta, Mazuelo and Graciano, were picked late in a cooler year when they finished the harvest the 20th of October, with plenty of times for the grapes to develop full aromas and flavors and complete ripeness. It fermented destemmed and lightly crushed in oak vats with indigenous yeasts, separating qualities, villages and soils, and matured in 80% French and 20% American oak barrels, 20% of them new, for 24 months, with racking every eight to nine months. It's a textbook example of their style in a very good year, with power, concentration and clout, elegance and freshness. It was a very harmonious year; the cycle was long and the tannins ripened to perfection. It's terrific and more so for the volume they produce (984,000 bottles of it). It was fined with egg whites and bottled in January 2024. Drink 2025-2040."
JEB DUNNUCK 94 POINTS - "The winery’s flagship, the wine that introduced Muga to the world, the 2021 Muga Reserva is Tempranillo-dominant, with Garnacha, Mazuelo, and Graciano filling in the gaps. A larger-production wine, it offers tremendous quality, fermented in wooden vats using indigenous yeasts, the grapes separated by quality, soil type, and village origin. This one in particular is from a beautiful vintage and practically beams in full-bodied concentration, with supple, silky tannins and light touches of oak spice, cedar, balsamic, and white pepper. A new release, it should continue to thrive another 15-20 years. Drink 2025-2045."
