Lopez de Heredia

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Bosconia Gran Reserva 2004

"All the excellence and richness of the Bosconia vineyard, a true tasting experience in very limited quantities!"

"Imagine walking through López de Heredia's catacomb-like cellar, full of cobwebs and mushrooms. Imagine the damp, cool air chilling your bones. This is where the Gran Reserva Bosconia 2004, a blend of Tempranillo, Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano, spent over ten years aging. From the Bosconia vineyard in Rioja Alta, this wine has a herbaceous profile. Aromas also include tertiary notes of cola, leather and thyme on a background of hazelnut and cedar. Dry and silky, the palate is lightly structured, with textured tannins and juicy length. Delicately evolved, this is a rare, savory wine of the old school." (Vinous 2023)

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva 2004

"An exceptional cuvée of great rarity, rated 100/100 by the Wine Advocate!"

"A reticent white wine, full of power and depth. Aromas of butterscotch, waxed lemon, macadamia nuts, saffron and honey, but also roasted sweet potato. The wine is full-bodied, but not heavy, with lots of sparkle. I like the phenolic touch at the end, before a persistent finish that lasts for almost a minute. Incredible. A real beauty. This wine was aged for 10 years in old barrels before bottling. It can be drunk now, but will age very well over the next 10 to 20 years." (James Suckling 2024)

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva 2004

"A sublime and bewildering 100/100 Wine Advocate rating, available in very limited quantities!"

"The year was excellent, and the Viña Tondonia grapes were picked from October 11, the dates of yesteryear. I tasted the exceptional Parreno 2001 two weeks before tasting this wine, and found many similarities between the two wines. It has complex notes of forest floor, truffle, wild herbs, spices and mushrooms, as well as a touch of iodine. It is velvety, with very elegant tannins and a supple finish. It's powerful and persistent, but there's also something ethereal about it. It's full of energy, light and power. It should last almost forever. Bravo!" (Wine Advocate 2024)

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Tondonia Reserva 2013

"A white of unparalleled smoothness, freshness and complexity worthy of an exceptional Rioja".

"Blanco Reserva Viña Tondonia 2013 is a blend of 90% Viura and 10% Malvasía Riojana from the Tondonia vineyard, located along the Ebro River. Aged for six years in oak barrels and a further two years in bottle, this wine defies youthful expectations with its brilliant amber hue. Subtle aromas of honey, dried apricot, mandarin peel and light oak greet the senses. Initially rich and pervasive, it evolves into a slightly chalky flow with a touch of freshness on the palate. This complex white wine, with its lingering finish and final hint of hazelnut, stands out for its aging potential, like the Rioja whites of yesteryear." (Vinous 2023)

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Gravonia Crianza 2016

"A white signed Lopez de Heredia deserving its place in the pantheon according to Vinous!"

"Aromas of cashew nuts, toasted almonds, saffron, white truffles, honey, dried lemons and beeswax. Lively acidity, cream, nuts and subtle white fruits on the palate. Long and tasty. A beautiful wine with a minute-long finish. A classic Lopez de Heredia and one of the best." (James Suckling 2024)

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Cubillo Crianza 2016

"Surprising, spectacular and elegant according to the Wine Advocate, an extremely tasty vintage!"

"The 2016 Viña Cubillo Tinto Crianza is surprising, spectacular, elegant, clean and fresh like few vintages before. It was a superb year, with quality, quantity and freshness. It's the complete opposite of the 2015 vintage, which was much warmer and riper. The 2016s have a moderate alcohol level and above all the perception of less ripeness (even if the alcohol level is very close). It seems very young, still quite primary. Mercedes explained: "Cubillas, a 24-hectare parcel, is a vineyard that could produce Gran Reserva wines. It's a very good vineyard, but we would miss the Crianza in our range". In fact, the comment was that this vintage is even a challenge for the Viña Tondonia red "because of its price". It is indeed a bargain. "But it doesn't have the finesse of Tondonia," concludes María José. In any case, it's super tasty." (Wine Advocate 2024)

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Tondonia Reserva 2012

"Sensational balance, aged flavor and luminosity typical of Tondonia reds according to James Suckling!"

"Viña Tondonia Reserva 2012 comes from a very dry year, with 25% less rainfall than average (at the time), which translated into lower yields from very healthy grapes that produced wines with a nice balance between alcohol and polyphenols, making them very suitable for barrel aging. Barrel ageing was slightly longer, for six years. The wine is aromatic with a developed, spicy, tertiary profile (forest floor, a touch of brick dust and iodine), complex and nuanced. The palate is full and round, with polished tannins and a long, dry finish. The nose and profile of this wine are typical of Tondonia." (Wine Advocate 2024)

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Tondonia Reserva 2011

4/5 (3 reviews)

"A baffling Burgundian style!

"A traditional beauty that expresses iron, warm earth and savory tobacco leaves, as well as plums, spices and orange zest. It's juicy and still tight, with firm but savory tannins. It's medium-bodied and quite lively in texture, as are the other López de Heredia reds tasted in this session. Drink now or cellar. (James Suckling 2022).

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva 2001

5/5 (1 reviews)

"The Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva 2001 is the successor to the 1995. [...] The nose is young (tasting it blind, you'd think it was 10 years old, not 20!). It has a nose of sweet spices, undergrowth and cigar ash, a little balsamic, perfectly ripe blackberry, integrated and young but beginning to show tertiary complexity. The palate is velvety and medium-bodied, with powdery, fine-grained tannins denoting a limestone soil that adds finesse and texture, and a sapid, savory, almost saline finish. This will make a fine bottle of old Rioja in 30 years ' time" (Wine Advocate 2020).

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Tondonia Reserva 2012

5/5 (1 reviews)

"[...] It has marked mushroom notes, which is what you get when you enter their cellars, in a hot, dry vintage, even more vibrant." (Wine Advocate 2022). Viña Tondonia Reserva 2012 offers a fresh, complex nose with lovely intensity, on notes of honey, caramel and Earl Grey tea. Round and elegant on the palate, with mushroom and damp chalk aromas and a light finish. Ideal with white meat...

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Gravonia Crianza 2015

5/5 (1 reviews)

"Rare!"

"The 2015 was considered a very good vintage, as it was warm, dry and healthy, and the Viña Gravonia Blanco 2015 has a little more alcohol at 13% - just half a degree makes a big difference, and the wine is not as lively as other cooler vintages. For María José López de Heredia, the wine is a little too powerful; the vintage was perfectly ripe and the grapes were very healthy, but the wine lacks the citrus freshness and vivacity that Gravonia should have." (Wine Advocate 2022). Although a little less fresh than previous vintages, the 2015 is still a fine gourmet vintage!

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Cubillo Crianza 2015

4/5 (9 reviews)

"The Viña Cubillo Tinto Crianza 2015 reflects the warmer conditions of the year, and with the riper fruit they harvested to produce this wine, they still managed to maintain an alcohol level of around 13.5%. Cubillo's vineyard is more clayey and, sometimes, clay soils take the heat better and make the wines cooler than those from poorer soils." (Wine Advocate 2022). Fresh on the nose with licorice aromas, this wine reveals a silky, fresh and persistent palate. Ideal with tapas!

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Tondonia Reserva 2010

4.3/5 (6 reviews)

"A baffling Burgundian style".

"The Viña Tondonia Reserva 2010 has everything I expect from a Tondonia Reserva, complexity, elegance and evolution, a developed nose with notes of undergrowth and wild berries, herbs and flowers, a touch of iodine, brick dust and very fine, refined tannins. It has the seriousness and elegance of Tondonia. It's a blend of 70% Tempranillo, 20% Garnacho (they use the masculine form of the grape's name) and 5% Graciano and Mazuelo that fermented in old oak vats from when the winery was founded 144 years ago, and matured in well-dried American oak barrels for six years [...]." (Wine Advocate 2022)

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Bosconia Reserva 2010

3.6/5 (5 reviews)

"Dried flowers and black fruits on the nose, with some mahogany and bark. Medium-bodied, with fine tannins and good hold and length. Complex and persistent. Tonic, too. A special wine, showing its age and tradition. Decant an hour before serving. Drink or keep. (James Suckling - 2021)

Lopez de Heredia - Rioja Viña Gravonia Crianza 2014

Viña Gravonia Crianza 2014 has a lovely nose with aromas of apple, lemon, walnut and other spices and offers a palate with lovely acidity, on saline notes on the finish. Always a fine gourmet cuvée!