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R. López de Heredia

Viña Tondonia Reserva Rioja Tempranillo Blend 2004

Medium ruby garnet quite narrow terracotta rim . Quite herbal , dried strawberry and red cherry nose , touch of iodine , sous bois , dried mushroom notes , discreet roasted coffee note after a while. Quite pretty red fruits on the palate with good freshness , strawberry , earthy cherry and a marine , iodine like note , sous bois underneath . Quite elegant and well balanced acidity with fine tannic grip . Good red fruit , earthy tinged finish . This is showing more advanced than the 2001 Reserva , and would like to try another bottle of this , as I suspect this half is a bit below par. On the basis of this bottle drink now and over the next 5 or so years . — 2 days ago

Tom, Shay and 4 others liked this

Bodegas y Viñedos Vega Sicilia

Unico Ribera del Duero Tempranillo Blend 2013

While I think it has the potential to be a memorable wine, right now it seemed a bit disjointed. — 16 days ago

Ira, jesus and 9 others liked this

Marqués de Riscal

Reserva Herederos del Marques de Riscal Rioja Tempranillo 2017

Haven’t had in ages. Plenty of dill, vanilla, & red fruits. — 16 days ago

Tom, jesus and 8 others liked this
Jay Kline

Jay Kline Influencer Badge Premium Badge

One of the best wines for the money, anywhere.
Peter Sultan

Peter Sultan Influencer Badge

High praise indeed @Jay Kline ! Was my intro to Rioja several decades ago. It is reliable @Peter van den Besselaar .

R. López de Heredia

Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva Rioja Tempranillo Blend 2004

Ruby core with quite wide garnet , terracotta rim . Quite deep and reserved at first , floral , red berry , strawberry, raspberry , red cherry , very fruit forward . On the palate this is also very primary , with lots of sweet strawberry , raspberry and cherry . Really fruit driven , so young . Bright acidity , quite strict tannin frame . This is a mineral saline note after a while , lots more complexity hidden underneath all plushness of the fruit . Perfectly balanced and proportioned with a long finish . Really promising and the finest of all the wines on this night but you will need to wait for the real fireworks to begin , a wine for the future . Wait 10 years and will probably show well a further 15 -20. — a day ago

Jan, Dave and 5 others liked this

R. López de Heredia

Viña Gravonia Crianza Rioja Viura 2012

This is a favourite & we picked up a few bottles to see how age changes it. This is our last bottle and age has done it well.

Time has made it weightier. The wine is real dry & has a bit of a walnut flavour. In its depths, you can tease out a hint of sweetness.

We need to find more.
— a month ago

Gillian Koh
with Gillian
Peter, Pinotman and 1 other liked this
Peter Sultan

Peter Sultan Influencer Badge

It sings to me too… just the price of admission has radically altered over the years!@Vin d’Ottawa
Pinotman /// Andreas

Pinotman /// Andreas

I am surprised that you did not rate this higher. I have an older version - they tend to get oxidized - hence the Walnut - there are folks who hate that - but i think it is different and brilliant!
Vin d’Ottawa

Vin d’Ottawa

@Peter Sultan it is pricier these days.
@Pinotman /// Andreas for me this is a special wine

Bodegas Numanthia

Numanthia Toro Tempranillo 2018

Delicious. Perfect with NY Strip. — 3 days ago

Mariana Puga
with Mariana
Mariana, Ted and 9 others liked this

R. López de Heredia

Viña Tondonia Reserva Rioja Blanco Malvasia Viura 2000

Quite yellow gold colour , wide light lemon rim. Shows quite a lot of development . Quite toasty with roasted nuts , candied citrus peel , candle wax , ginger , saffron, curry powder, sea breeze. On the palate this is structured and quite full bodied with the nutty character , ginger and candied lemon rind , great intensity and grip , salty , balanced acidity and very long and balanced on the finish . Drinking well now but needs time to open , will probably continue at this high level for another 5-10 years and maybe even improve further — 2 days ago

Dave, Jan and 7 others liked this

Descendientes de José Palacios

Pétalos Bierzo Mencía 2018

Retain freshness of cherries, chocolate little spice open up nicely over 3 to 4 hours — a day ago

Bodegas y Viñedos Vega Sicilia

Valbuena 5° Ribera del Duero Tempranillo Blend 2018

Beautiful. The only thing was that we opened after Unico and that was a hard one to follow. — 22 days ago

Ira, Shay and 13 others liked this

La Rioja Alta

Viña Alberdi Reserva Rioja Tempranillo 2020

Tasted during WSET Level 2 class on 6/9/25. Very good tenparanillo. Mix of red and black fruits, hints of spice! — 2 days ago