R. López de Heredia – Archetype Tasting

Wine Tasting, May 29th, 2019

In the world of fine art, a Triptych is a three-panel image, often presented in large format display. Our tasting this week will reflect a similar concept, in presenting three individual wines of special prestige, from a single producer. I had the pleasure to visit Lopéz de Heredia in July of 2017, and the occasion remains among my most treasured wine experiences.

As Neal Martin describes below, the winery is very traditional in operations, with the welcome foyer being the most modern aspect of the whole winery. Barrels are produced at the winery’s own cooperage, hundreds of which are squirreled away in the deep caves of the Bodega. Bouncy black cellar mold lines the walls, and a sweet funky odor wafts in the subterranean air. Truthfully, the taste of the wines reflect this cellar terroir, as is the case with all wineries, clean or rustic.

One notable aspect of their winemaking is that the barrels are not new, at least for wines that are destined for market. Pressing juice is used to neutralize the wood, with at least three years for the new oak. Coconut and dill are common terms used for “American Oak” notes with Lopéz de Heredia wines, although my suspicion is that these aromas come more from oxidation, than from Lactone impact itself. Other producers may use some portion of new oak, either American or French, but the practice is varied. As with every region in the wine world, traditions and “classic styles” are ever-changing, and often beyond straightforward condensation.

Regardless, in the case of Rioja, the results are consistently delightful, as the wines from this week will surely indicate.

Nick Davis, May 2019, Seattle

Wine List:

Les Vignerons de Florensac, Picpoul de Pinet, Languedoc FR
2017 Domaine Mas Cremat, Muscat de Rivesaltes, Vin Doux Naturel, Roussillon, FR
1995 Caves São João, “Poço do Lobo” Arinto, Beiras VR, PT
Txomin Etxaniz, Getaria, Txakoli Rose, País Vasco, ES
2007 R. López de Heredia, Viña Gravonia, Blanco Crianza, Rioja, ES
2000 R. López de Heredia, Viña Tondonia, Rosado Gran Reserva, Rioja, ES
1973 R. López de Heredia, Viña Bosconia, 5º Año, Tinto Crianza, Rioja, ES
Gregoletto, Cabernet, Colli Trevigiani IGT, Veneto, IT
2016 Turley, “Juvenile” Zinfandel, California, US
2013 Château La Nerthe, “Clos de Beauvenir” Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc, Southern Rhône, FR
2016 Rhys, “Porcupine Hill” Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley, US
Orange River Cellars, Hanepoot, Muscat d’Alexandrie, Northern Cape, ZA
2010 Chateau de Pommard, Pommard, Burgundy, FR

Key Reviews:

2000 Rosado

With the estate’s policy of holding the Rosada back, readers should note that the next scheduled release is not until 2017. The 2000 Tondonia Rosada Gran Reserva is completely sold out in the United States and the next is not due for several years. Anyway, it has a pale salmon hue. The nose is very complex for a rose with decayed rose petal and hints of nougat. The palate is very well-balanced with good weight and its searing, dry finish leaves you wanting more after the intriguing nose. Drink now if you are lucky to have some.

I have adored, indeed occasionally worshiped, the wines of Lopez de Heredia for many years, so I am not ashamed to admit that visiting both their vineyard and their winery was a pilgrimage. Founded by Rafael Lopez de Heredia y Landeta in 1877, it has withstood the tide of corporatization and homogeneity, and epitomizes timeless, artisan winemaking in their own individual, almost solipsistic manner. Technology is noticeable by its absence here.

For example, to quote her sister Maria-Jose at a tasting that I subsequently attended in London: “Indigenous yeasts have adapted to high temperatures. To control the temperature during fermentation, we open doors and windows” and “malolactic is the invention of modern winemakers.” I had to check whether this was 2012 or 1912. If you were to award points for charisma, then this producer would be in a league of its own. That would count for nothing if their wines were not distinguished, individual, long-lived and above all, delicious. It is commonly known that if you are seeking bags of fruit and lashings of oak, this is not the place to come. My views and these scores might be irrational to someone with a penchant for lush, voluptuous Rioja. Lopez de Heredia is the apotheosis of traditional, classic wines: taut, fresh, bucolic, utterly charming and amazingly long-lived. I spent two or three hours with winemaker Mercedes Lopez de Heredia, who was celebrating her birthday with, appropriately enough, a bottle of Tondonia Gran Reserva from her year of birth. I urge readers to access the video I took of Mercedes explaining the vineyard in her own breathless style. In the meantime, I will crack on with the wines “Wines should talk by themselves,” Maria-Jose enthused to her enraptured audience at a tasting in London. “My father was a vine maker, not a winemaker. Each wine is a reflection of a different land that my great-grandfather bought. Our wines respond to the history of Rioja.”

I would add to her comments that since these are mainly aged wines, a bottle of Lopez de Heredia is an individual and each time you meet, you may see a different side to its personality. So treat these reviews as they are: snapshots at a given moment. We commence with their white wines and indeed, I know of several connoisseurs who rate these even better than their reds and I can sympathize with that view. “The white wines were made as a copy of Graves and were made to be aged,” Marie-Jose continued. “So they are made like reds and are harvested at the same time. They undergo skin contact for one, two or three days to absorb the preservative from the skins and pips. Viura gives complexity as it ages.” – Neal Martin, The Wine Advocate, August 2002

2007 Blanco

The cooler 2007 produced a superb 2007 Viña Gravonia Blanco from very old Viura vines on gravel soils; the wine fermented in ancient oak vats where they have never added any yeasts, and matured in oak barrels for four years, fined with egg whites and bottled in September 2012. The nose is unique, showing aromas of chamomile, beeswax, honey, mushroom and spices, with reminiscences of a white Graves or an aged white Hermitage, quite developed, showing it all and ready. The palate shows great acidity with some oaky hints, with a chalky sensation, deep flavors with persistence and superb length. This has to be one of the greatest bargains in white Rioja. It feels lively, approachable, but with enough of everything to provide pleasure for a long time. There are 21,500 bottles of this wine. – Luis Gutiérrez, The Wine Advocate, August 2016

1973 Tinto

In the 1970s and earlier, it was customary for bodegas in Rioja to label some wines not as crianza, reserva, or gran reserva, as they do often do today, but instead to label their wines by the amount of years it was released after harvest. Thus, this 5º año from Viña Bosconia was released in its 5th year, some years ahead of its Reserva bottling. We know this to be from the very good 1973 vintage, and it is an affordable way to get a glimpse of this storied bodega’s older releases. These bottles were part of a collection from a Spanish source we have purchased older Riojas from in the past. They arrived to us in early April, in good condition and ready to, ideally recover a bit longer from their journey prior to being cracked open and enjoyed. – K&L Wine Merchant

The Heredia range, with some recent vintages:

Blanco

Crianza, Viña Gravonia
- 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009
Reserva, Viña Tondonia
- 1993, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005
Gran Reserva, Viña Tondonia
- 1964, 1968, 1973, 1976, 1981, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1996

Rosado

Gran Reserva, Viña Tondonia
- 1987, 1995, 1997, 2000, 2008, 2009

Tinto

Crianza, Viña Cubillo
- 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010

Reserva, Viña Bosconia
- 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006
Reserva, Viña Tondonia
- 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006

Gran Reserva, Viña Bosconia
- 1964, 1976, 1978, 1981, 1991, 1994, 1995, 2005
Gran Reserva, Viña Tondonia
- 1970, 1973, 1976, 1981, 1985, 1987, 1991, 1994, 1995