LdH whites and roses dinner

Organised a LdH white / rose dinner since I have been sitting on these for a while and wanted to share. All the bottles from me other than the '08 and '09 roses.

Main takeaways were (i) Tondonias need time to develop complexity as the younger ones didn’t distinguish themselves from the Gravonias, the latter were a real surprise for me in terms of how well they showed, (ii) ‘08 was a much stronger vintage than ‘09 for LdH across the three wines tasted, (iii) these wines have remarkable singularity, balance, and character to them.

• 2012 R. López de Heredia Rioja Blanco Viña Gravonia 93 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Quite different from the last bottle, this had superb freshness and a nice linear drive that usually isn't present in LdH whites. No oxidative or honey notes here; different but I found this to be excellent.

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• 2009 R. López de Heredia Rioja Blanco Viña Gravonia 91 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Slightly heavier and more developed than the ‘12 but still showed good freshness. Good but didn't have the freshness of the '12, or the incredible depth of the '08.

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• 2008 R. López de Heredia Rioja Blanco Viña Gravonia 94 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Had the hazelnut, honey notes of a LdH white with some development; and almost the same level of the complexity of the ‘03 and ‘05 Tondonias. So expressive, and unanimously the favourite Gravonia.

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• 2009 R. López de Heredia Rioja Blanco Reserva Viña Tondonia 90 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Another reticent young Tondonia that did not distinguish itself from the Gravonia of the same vintage. Slightly distracting nail varnish note on the nose, palate was rather muted. thought this was the weakest bottle of the night.

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• 2008 R. López de Heredia Rioja Blanco Reserva Viña Tondonia 91 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Fresh but reticent, thought the ‘08 Gravonia outclassed this when I went back to do a side-by-side. Maybe Tondonias need age to develop that extra gear?

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• 2005 R. López de Heredia Rioja Blanco Reserva Viña Tondonia 94 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  This was the wine that opened my eyes to LdH whites at a 2018 RP tasting, so glad that it showed well today. Had more presence and was more oxidative than the ‘03 with more overt hazelnut and walnut notes, so this was probably a more textbook Tondonia white. I preferred the elegance of the ‘03 today, unlike the majority who preferred this for the sheer weight.

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• 2003 R. López de Heredia Rioja Blanco Reserva Viña Tondonia 95 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Incredibly fresh and light-footed for its age and a warm vintage. Loved the floral and elegant nature of this. This was my favourite but most preferred the ‘05; but no doubt the two oldest Tondonias were by far the best whites in terms of depth and complexity. Forceberry's note below described my sentiments for this wine perfecty.

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• 2011 R. López de Heredia Rioja Rosado Gran Reserva Viña Tondonia 94 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Best nose, acidity and freshness out of the four vintages of roses today. Very pretty red fruit. Showing well in a youthful, exuberant way. Agree with NickA's note below.

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• 2010 R. López de Heredia Rioja Rosado Gran Reserva Viña Tondonia 92 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Clearly from a warm vintage, with more blood orange notes than the 2011 which was more red-fruited. Underlying potential was there but fruit wasn't the most expressive today.

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• 2009 R. López de Heredia Rioja Rosado Gran Reserva Viña Tondonia 91 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Similar to my note in 2021. Still needs more time to integrate, this was clearly more alcoholic and structured compared to the ‘08. Perhaps too powerful for its own good, preferred the elegance of the '08 and '11.

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• 2008 R. López de Heredia Rioja Rosado Gran Reserva Viña Tondonia 95 Points

  Spain, La Rioja, La Rioja Alta, Rioja

  Stylistically very similar to the elegant '11 compared to the more powerful '09 and '10, so this was right up my wheelhouse. An extra couple of years had allowed this to be more balanced than the '11, loved the silky and harmonious nature of this. My favourite of the rose flight.

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