Community Tasting Notes 6

• LW31 Likes this wine:

  October 20, 2016 - Fantastic experience. Deep flavor profile yet also wild and hard to pin down. Flowers, nuts, bit of caramel. Defintiely has dignity of age but still fresh and very much alive. What a treat to have excellent bottle of this.

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• Los 12 Glotones Likes this wine: 93 points

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  Els12golafres Wine Tasting Group: http://vinosclasicos.blogspot.com.es/2013/05/vina-tondonia-1968-blanco-gran-reserva.html
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  De color amarillo dorado, vivo, brillante, reflejos anaranjados, con cierta sensación de grosor, lágrimas gruesas.
  
  Nariz de enorme personalidad y marcada factura de la bodega. Rebosa vida y nervio, con apuntes de fruta escarchada, orejones, confitura de naranja amarga, cítricos dulces (pomelo, citronela-lemongrass) y un componente cremoso a carne de membrillo, miel, acacia. Poco a poco se abre y van apareciendo recuerdos a ceras, vaina de vainilla y un toque de hidrocarburos y ahumados de fondo.
  
  En boca es grueso, macizo, íntegro, sin asomos de cansancio. Sobresale una marcada acidez que lo amplifica trayendo la fruta madura y finos especiados. Sabroso, redondo, maduro y aún por hacerse. Permanece en boca de forma indefinidad con esos amargosos elegantes. Un blanco complejo y sin complejos, expresivo, lleno, en un momento de consumo excepcional. Aún tiene que ir domándose y ganando enteros en los próximos años.
  
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  -E-L-S - 1-2 - G-O-L-A-F-R-E-S - W-I-N-E - T-A-S-T-I-N-G - G-R-O-U-P - - - - - - -
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  85% viura, 15% malvasía - 12% vol.
  Permanece durante 6 meses en depósitos de madera. Criado durante 10 años en viejas barricas de roble americano de 225 litros elaboradas por los toneleros de la misma bodega. El vino es sometido a 17 trasiegas manuales. Clarificado con claras de huevo frescas. Embotellado directamente de la barrica en octubre de 1978, junto al Viña Tondonia 1970 Blanco Gran Reserva. Sin filtrar. Lacrado especial para favorecer su mejor evolución en botella y preservarlo de contaminaciones. Producción limitada a 10.000 botellas. Descansa un mínimo de 44 meses en botellero antes de ser comercializado.
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  Comment

• dream wrote: 94 points

  December 22, 2011 - It is hard to describe how amazing the nose of this wine is - apricots and spices and the magnificent scent of old but preserved flowers. On the palate, it is quite aged with wonderful floral notes and less of the oxidized intensity than expected. It just glides softly across the tongue again creating this sensation of old, even petrified flowers. A stunningly unique wine but as this bottle was in perfect condition, this should be drunk now; or better yet, just smelled for hours.

  Comment

• JJL wrote: 96 points

  September 13, 2009 - Spainish Treasures #3 over Lunch at Mugaritz (San Sebastian, Spain): This one started off weak with the nose of paint stripper, not a good smell. We were thinking what do you expect for a 41 year-old white. But with air, it really evolved. The nose lost the funk and gained lemon gelato, smoke and cream. The palate was very big for a white, I almost thought I was drinking a pinot. There was more smoke, some sweet melon and a great creamy mouthfeel. We later found out from our guest of honor, Maria Jose Lopez de Heredia, that these wines have big tannins because the are fermented with the grape skins which allows them to age for such a long time.

  1 person found this helpful Comment

• br wrote:

  March 9, 2008 - amazingly fresh! ocean minerals, layers of flavors, took over an hour to open up. fantastic, fascinating and wonderful.

  Comment

Pro Reviews 1

Wine Definition

• Vintage 1968
• Type White
• Producer R. López de Heredia
• Varietal White Blend
• Designation Blanco Gran Reserva
• Vineyard Viña Tondonia
• Country Spain
• Region La Rioja
• SubRegion La Rioja Alta
• Appellation Rioja

Community Holdings

• Pending Delivery 29 (24%)
• In Cellars 71 (60%)
• Consumed 19 (16%)

Food Pairing

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