viña tondonia gran reserva 2004

for 145 years, four generations of the lópez de heredia family have dedicated themselves to producing exceptional wines, true masterpieces. an aspiration that the winery's founder, rafael lópez de heredia y landeta, defined in the 19th century as the "supreme rioja". the care of the vines, the scrupulous selection of the grapes, the ageing in oak barrels in deep underground galleries, and then the ageing in bottles have given rise to these wines with a bouquet of great delicacy and nuance. for a long time, lópez de heredia wines have been given different names depending on the style of production, names that are still in use today and are known throughout the world, as the founder dreamed, with the name "viña tondonia" at the top. special mention should be made of our white wines. if there is a winery with experience in old white wines, it is lópez de heredia. our winery had no problem taking the risk of making these white wines not just young wines. we were not afraid to age the white wine in oak for as long as the red wine: the result is really surprising. when this kind of wine stays in contact with wood for a long time, the woody tastes and aromas are more pronounced, and even unbalanced. however, when a few years' bottle ageing has polished the roundness of the wood and created new and seductive aromas of spice, bitter almond, vanilla and nuts, the so-called bouquet, we discover a majestic and opulent white tondonia wine. no grapes from outside the rioja region have been used in the production of any of these wines, refusing even the limited permissiveness once tolerated by the rioja d.o. regulatory council. this winery has never used any other grapes or vines since it was founded in 1877, a fact recognised by the aforementioned council in the form of a diploma of guarantee, granted to lópez de heredia viña tondonia, the only winery to have received this distinction and which proudly displays it on the back label of all its bottles the 2004 viña tondonia gran reserva didn't stop growing and changing in the glass for the good three hours that lasted the tasting of the portfolio. i had tasted this wine on my previous visit (they don't usually open future gran reserva vintages), and i was very impressed. this was aromatic (but took some time in the glass to open up), floral, perfumed, elegant and nuanced. the year was excellent, textbook, and the grapes from viña tondonia were picked from the 11th of october, the dates from yesteryear. i had the exceptional 2001 parreno two weeks before i tasted this wine, and i found many similarities between both wines. it has complex notes of forest floor, truffle, wild herbs, spices and mushrooms and a touch of iodine. this is velvety, with super elegant tannins and a supple finish. it has clout and persistence, but there's also something ethereal about it. it's full of energy, light and power. this should be almost eternal. bravo! 24,000 bottles produced. it was bottled in november 2018.