R. Lopez de Heredia Rioja Reserva Vina Tondonia 2001
(Rioja, Spain) - [JS 97] [WA 96+] [JG 94]

About the Wine:
Viña Tondonia is the estate red that made R. López de Heredia famous. Don Rafael López de Heredia y Landeta, who founded the bodega in Haro in 1877, created the Viña Tondonia vineyard in 1913-14: more than 100 hectares on the right bank of the Ebro, on alluvial clay soil with a high proportion of limestone. Every grape comes from the family's own vineyards, and the bodega has never used fruit or wine from anywhere else.

How It Is Made:
The bodega describes its Viña Tondonia Red Reserva as Tempranillo (75%), Garnacho (15%), and Graciano and Mazuelo (10%), all from its own vineyards. It spends six years in barrel, racked twice a year and fined with fresh egg whites, then rests in bottle, unfiltered.

Winery Tasting Note:
Colour: Vibrant red leading slightly towards amber. Nose: Light fresh texture with notes of vanilla and dried berry aromas. Taste: Rich, very dry, smooth, developed. Firm tannins and good balance. (The bodega's note for its Viña Tondonia Red Reserva.)

Pairing & Service:
Goes well with all meat dishes however prepared. The bodega suggests a leg of new-season Welsh lamb stuffed with wild garlic, rosemary and anchovies. Serve at 64.5° to 68°F (18° to 20°C).

Ratings & Reviews

97 Points - James Suckling:
"This is subtle, with subdued fruit and dried flowers. The palate is firm and incisive but integrated, with a more solid structure and a defined mid-palate. There is a subtle depth to the fruit complemented by a strong framework. This will age for a long time. Drink or hold." (Jul 2026)

96+ Points - Wine Advocate:
"I had the chance to taste a bottle of the 2001 Viña Tondonia Reserva 10 years after it was released, and the wine has evolved beautifully and quite slowly—at least that is the case for these bottles that have been kept in the winery for all these years. It's austere and elegant, with balance and concentration, polished tannins and a chalky texture, long tasty and dry. This is lively and should continue developing in bottle for quite some time… Drinking Window: 2022-2034." -Luis Gutiérrez (Jul 2022)

94 Points - John Gilman, View From the Cellar:
"The 2001 Viña Tondonia Rioja “Reserva” from López de Heredia is a truly beautiful wine in the making. At age eighteen, it is drinking with a great degree of style and polish, but is still in climbing mode and will be even better down the road than it is today! The gorgeous bouquet wafts from the glass in a mix of cherries, raspberries, toasted coconut, cloves, salty soil elements, cigar wrapper, cinnamon and orange zest in the upper register. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, refined and nicely tangy, with a lovely core of fruit, great soil signature, moderate, buried tannins and stunning length and grip on the vibrant and very complex finish. This is not a powerful wine by any stretch of the imagination, but rather a vibrant, intensely flavored and beautifully transparent wine of breed and stellar complexity. 2001 is a great vintage in Rioja and the Viña Tondonia “Reserva” has fully captured all of the potential of this magical year. It is delicious now and is only going to get better for the next couple of decades." (Sep 2019)