95pts James Suckling
A traditional beauty that effuses iron, warm earth and savory tobacco leaves, together with plums, spices and orange zest. This is juicy and still tight, with firm but savory tannins. Medium-weight and quite zesty in texture, as is the case with the other López de Heredia reds tasted this session. Drink now or hold.
94pts Wine Advocate
The 2011 Viña Tondonia Reserva is darker and shows riper fruit, a rounder palate and some dusty tannins. A year of ripeness, concentration and tannin, the wine is powerful with the finesse of Tondonia. Tasting this next to the textbook 2010 Tondonia revealed how this has more muscle and a wider back and the 2010 epitomizes the finesse and elegance.
94pts Vinous
The 2011 Viña Tondonia Reserva Rioja was ordered during a run of disappointing wines. It has a youthful nose, probably still too young to broach, with black plum, clove, hints of star anise, and smoke. Lovely definition, though not as powerful as other vintages tasted. The palate is quite firm and structured with grippy tannins that frame the dusky black fruit with veins of blue fruit towards the finish. There is a seriousness about this Tondonia that I appreciate, though frankly, I would cellar for another decade.
93pts Wine Spectator
Richly savory on the nose, this fresh, sinewy red features a minerally underpinning of petrol, earth, iron and salt to the flavors of juicy dried cherry and cranberry, red licorice and mandarin orange peel. Opens nicely in the glass and on the palate, with the persistent finish showing aromatic herbs and spices, plus more mineral notes. Tempranillo, Garnacho, Graciano and Mazuelo. Drink now through 2031. 19,166 cases made, 4,500 cases imported.
Winemaker's Notes
Vibrant red leading slightly towards amber. Light fresh texture with notes of vanilla, red cherry and dried berry aromas. Rich, plush, very dry, smooth and developed yet still fresh, with firm tannins, good balance and great length.
History
It all started in the middle of the nineteenth century when French negociants visited the Rioja region to find alternative sources of quality grapes to transform into wine, since the phylloxera epidemic had decimated their vineyards. Our founder, Don Rafael López de Heredia y Landeta, a knowledgeable and enthusiastic student in the art of wine making, followed closely in their footsteps.
Don Rafael fell in love with the region and especially the area around Haro, the mythical capital of the Rioja Alta region. He observed that there was a magical combination of soil and climate that would offer the perfect environment for producing wine that would eventually become world famous. Around 1877 he began the design and construction of the complex that is today known as the López de Heredia bodega (winery), the oldest in Haro and one of the first three houses in the Rioja region.
For over a century our emotions have been rooted in our love and passion for this land and its harvest. We cherish our heritage, and this combination of love and the rigorous quality standards we apply, have become our trademark and remains our maxim for today and the future.
Bodegas López de Heredia stands out as one of the few family-run bodegas regulated by the Denominación de Origen Calificada Rioja - DOC (Appellation region).
