In the glass
Aroma: dried apricot, beeswax, hazelnut, chamomile, saline
Palate: quince, toasted nut, lemon oil, mineral
A barrel-aged white Rioja with cult status: deeply oxidative, nutty and waxy, with piercing acidity that keeps it electric for decades, often compared to white Burgundy and old Hunter Semillon.
What it pairs with
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Bacalao al pil pil
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Salt cod in its emulsified oil meets the wine's waxy texture and saline lift. -
Kokotxas de merluza
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Hake cheeks in pil pil echo the white's nutty, gelatinous richness. -
Roast chicken with herbs
The oxidative white's depth handles roast poultry like an aged Chardonnay. -
Txangurro al horno
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Baked spider crab's sweetness plays against the wine's quince and mineral.
History
Made from Viura and Malvasia grown on the Tondonia estate and aged for around six years in American oak, the white Tondonia is one of the longest-lived white wines in the world and a benchmark for oxidative-style whites.
- 1947 — Early white Tondonia Reserva vintages
- 2018 — Aged white Rioja gains global cult following among sommeliers
Facts
- Producer
- R. Lopez de Heredia Vina Tondonia
- Grapes
- Viura (90%), Malvasia Riojana (10%)
- Classification
- DOCa Rioja
- Oak
- Around 6 years in American oak barrels with biannual racking before bottle ageing
- ABV
- 12.5%
- Price
- EUR 40 to 80 at retail
- Drinking window
- 5 to 30 from vintage
- First vintage
- 1947
Scores
- Tim Atkin 96 (2011 vintage, reviewed 2022)
- Vinous 95 (2010 vintage, reviewed 2021)