September 1, 2023 - Lopez di Heredia BYO (@MichaelsPlace): Sweet fruit, coffee, barnyard and a touch of cabbage.
September 1, 2023 - Beautiful texture and elegant complexity that is in a great window of maturity now. Tasted along with the 2004 and 2005 and this was winner of the flight!
January 15, 2022 - A blend of Viura aka. Macabeo (90%) and Malvasia Riojana aka. Alarije (10%). After the spontaneous fermentation, the wine is aged for 6 years in predominantly old American oak barrels, bottled unfiltered and aged for a further 5-6 years in the bottles before release. 12,5% alcohol. Tasted in Tondonia Blanco 1999-2005 vertical.
Somewhat deep, luminous burnished golden color - looks similar to the 2001 vintage and more youthful than the darker 1999 and 2002 vintages. The nose feels a bit low-key for a Tondonia Blanco with a bit restrained aromas of evolved waxy character, some wizened golden apples, a little bit of dusty soil, light nutty tones, hints of ripe citrus fruits and lemon zest, a touch of creamy richness and a whiff of dried flowers. The wine is very intense and slightly concentrated on the palate with a full body and fresh flavors that show relatively little evolution. There are notes of ripe golden apples, some nutty complexity, a little bit of slivered almonds, light notes of hay, a hint of chalky minerality and a creamy touch of panna cotta. The high acidity lends great sense of structure and freshness to the wine. The finish is long, dry and somewhat acid-driven with bright, tangy flavors of saline minerality, some wizened green apple tones, a little bit of oxidative nuttiness, light nuances of hay, a hint of rosin and a touch of lemon zest.
A wonderfully fresh and precise vintage of white Tondonia Reserva that seemed a bit restrained and understated in comparison to the other vintages we had. I wonder if this is just a lesser vintage compared to the outstanding 1999 and 2001 vintages, or if this was just caught in a slump. However, the wine was also surprisingly youthful for its age, showing less sense of development compared to the surrounding vintages and, conversely, great potential of future development. Although an excellent Rioja white - like Tondonia Reserva almost invariably is, every time - this seemed a bit lesser in quality compared to most of the other vintages we had. However, I wouldn't be surprised if this wine blossomed into something extraordinary with further aging, seeing how ridiculously youthful the wine seemed now, at the tender age of 21½ years.
October 27, 2021 - This is made up of Viura (90%) and Malvasía (10%). This pours out golden in the glass. A slight oxidative note is the first thing to hit the nose followed by lemon peel, butterscotch and ripe tangerine. Layers of flavors explode all across the tongue. Waxy lemon rind, orange peel, lemon curd, a hint of that butterscotch are all beautifully balanced with lovely acidity and a very long tongue coating finish.
July 14, 2021 - Still in great shape at twenty-one years of age.
November 7, 2020 - Election Celebration Continues (The Fisters - Chicago IL): Rich and seemingly meaty with combination of ripe orchard fruit and earth with very good density and acidity. Very good length as well.
August 25, 2020 - This has developed nicely. On opening the cork was perfect. Wine was golden yellow, lightly oxidized, vanilla, acitidy, honey - just like a 20-year old white Rioja should taste like.
November 15, 2018 - Honey, beeswax, nuts, oxidation (a bit like sherry) on the nose, beautiful golden yellow in colour. On the palate ripe fruit, wonderful acidity. Clean, intense, lovely weight on the palate, very long. Excellent, drink or keep. 92-94
June 24, 2018 - Rich, honeyed texture. Oxidated in its characteristic manner. Like late summer sunshine in the pre-sunset hour.
March 28, 2018 - Cellartracker in the flesh with Stefan, Mats, Tomas and Basil (La Rochelle, Tokyo): medium minus aromas of almond meal, marzipan, sweet spice, citrus notes, slight cream. Juicy acidity, citrus notes, lemon especially with a little grapefruit. Bit of front of mouth grip. Tangy. Non-intrusive alcohol warmth. I called Bordeaux blanc 2005