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| Viña Tondonia |
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| Viña Tondonia: winery bridge |
Viña Tondonia in Haro was the highlight of yesterday's visits. This is the third oldest of the bodegas in the Rioja and the most traditional. Sometimes people maintain and prize traditions out of laziness and a reluctance to change. However, the wonderful wines of Viña Tondonia show that their ultra-traditional way of very long aging – at a very substantial economic cost – is very well worth preserving.
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| Mercedes Lopez – the great, grand-daughter of the founder of Viña Tondonia After a tour of the cellars with Mercedes Lopez we tasted three finished wines. We started with the lovely 1981 Tondonia white Gran Reserva which has considerable similarities to an old Chenin Blanc or an old Jurançon.  Viña Tondonia 1981 Gran Reserva white Then the 1981 red Gran Reserva that showed quite high acidity and perhaps needs more time to show its best. We finished with the magnificent 1961 red Gran Reserva, which still has lovely sweet fruit, is wonderfully complex and shows no sign of tiring.  1961 Tondonia Tinto  Amazing spider's web in the cellars |
