R. Lopez de Heredia Vina Tondonia Vina Cubillo Crianza 2018

R. Lopez de Heredia Vina Tondonia Vina Cubillo Crianza 2018

Lopez de Heredia
$35.00

Grape: Tempranillo, Garnacha, Graciano, Mazuelo
Vintage: 2018
Type: Red

Viña Cubillo reveals itself as a charmingly deceptive wine, legally a modest "Crianza"—a classification that usually mandates just 1 year in barrel. LDH treats Cubillo with a radical disregard for modern commercial timelines by aging it in oak barrels for 3 years, followed by another 4 to 5 years of cellar maturation in bottle before release. María José López de Heredia often jokes that their entry-level Crianza is older than most neighboring wineries' Gran Reservas.

At the winery, Cubillo holds a warm, personal place as the family’s daily table wine; this is the bottle pulled for casual mid-week lunches. It is sourced from a 24-hectare vineyard plot historically known as "La Tercera", situated at an elevation of 410 meters on clay-limestone soils near the Ebro River. The blend relies heavily on tempranillo complemented by healthy proportions of garnacha, mazuelo, and graciano, which give it a slightly sunnier, fleshier personality than its more austere cellar mates.

A bright garnet red with ruby rim variations gives way to aromatics of dried cranberry, cherry preserves, leather, and soft incense. The palate yields focused flavors of red plum, black pepper, cedar, and tea leaf, backed by silky, fine-grained tannins and a bright beam of natural acidity. It displays a light, nimble weight on the mid-palate that keeps the liquid feeling fresh and energetic. The finish is long, dry, and savory, concluding with lingering notes of bitter orange peel and crushed stone.

Tondonia is the estate's top vineyard. Don Rafael López de Heredia y Landeta planted Viña Tondonia in 1913. The gorgeous 170 hectare Tondonia vineyard is situated in on the right bank of the Ebro river, which flows through the Rioja region.

Winery

This family-owned winery makes highly individual wines in a style essentially unchanged since its inception in 1877. They grow all their grapes using organic methods, ferment using only natural yeasts and do not filter their wines.

López de Heredia reputation as the ultimate Rioja traditionalist is undisputable: craft, farming, winemaking are all here and have been for a long, long time. Another remarkable feat is they also pioneered the single vineyard model in Rioja. Gravonia, Tondonia, Bosconia and Cubillo are all individual vineyards which have been in the family for generations.

Patience is a family watchword, as this bodega thinks nothing of waiting twenty years before releasing a wine. Their “Crianzas” are aged like others’ “Reservas” and “Gran Reservas”; the “Reservas” as long as others’ top “Gran Reservas”. And the ultimate accolade of “Gran Reserva” is accorded to only the very greatest vintages. Rarely are there more than three of these in a decade. These are uniquely traditional Riojas of massive, boundary-crossing repute. Both red and white are capable of staggering longevity.