Vega Sicilia, Spain’s most renowned producer, traces its roots to 1864, when Don Eloy Lecanda Chaves planted a vineyard east of Valladolid, in the Ribera del Duero region of Spain. The grape cuttings were from Bordeaux and by the 1920s the estate’s wines were winning acclaim at international wine festivals. In 1982 the estate was bought by the Alvarez Diez family, which still owns and operates the nearly 300-acres property. Grapes grown are Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec. Vega Siclia’s blend is generally about 70% Tempranillo, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and the remainder made up of Merlot and Malbec. Vega Sicilia Unico Reserva and the Vega Sicilia Unico Reserva Especial, a blend of three vintages, regularly earn very high ratings from critics. Parker has called Vega Sicilia “one of the world’s most iconic wines.”