The 2014, with three additional years resting in the cellars before it reached you. López de Heredia has been making wine the same way in Haro since 1877 — and Viña Cubillo is the bottle that lets you taste that stubbornness without paying a collector's price.
Rafael López de Heredia founds his bodega beside the railway station in Haro, at the moment French buyers came to Rioja looking for wine after phylloxera devastated Bordeaux.
Viña Cubillo
A single estate vineyard, farmed by the family, planted mainly to Tempranillo with Garnacha and a little Graciano and Mazuelo — the classical Rioja recipe.
American Oak
Years in old American oak casks, coopered on site, then racked by hand and by candlelight. The oak here adds texture and savour, not vanilla sweetness.
The 2014
After barrel came extended time in bottle in the cellars at Haro. With those additional years behind it, this vintage arrives softer and further resolved than the current release.
What Sets It Apart
Extra Bottle Age
Three more years in the cellar than the current release
Old American Oak
Casks made in the bodega's own cooperage
One Vineyard
Estate-grown fruit from Viña Cubillo alone
Rioja's Reference Point
The house other traditionalists are measured against
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At a Glance
Region
Rioja, Spain
Bodega
R. López de Heredia Viña Tondonia, est. 1877
Vineyard
Viña Cubillo, estate-grown
Classification
Rioja Crianza
Vintage
2014
ABV / Size
13.5% · 75cl
Questions
How does the 2014 differ from the 2017?
Same vineyard, same wine, same method — the difference is time. The 2014 has had three more years resting in bottle, so it drinks softer and more resolved, with the leather and tobacco side further developed. The 2017 is brighter and more fruit-forward. Choose the 2014 if you like mature Rioja, or want a bottle with some age on it for a gift.
What makes this different from modern Rioja?
Most contemporary Rioja is made in French oak for a darker, richer, more international style. López de Heredia never changed course: old American oak, long ageing, hand racking, and release only when the wine is ready. The result is paler, more aromatic and far more savoury — Rioja as it tasted a century ago.
Is Crianza the entry level?
In most bodegas, yes. Here it is relative — Viña Cubillo receives more barrel and bottle age than many other producers give their Reserva, which is why it drinks with a maturity its classification does not suggest.
How does it compare with Viña Tondonia Reserva?
Same bodega, different vineyard and tier. Viña Cubillo is the younger, brighter, more immediately giving of the two; the Tondonia Reserva comes from the estate's flagship vineyard with longer ageing and greater depth. Many people keep both.
Should I decant it?
Worth doing. Half an hour in a decanter opens the red fruit and settles the savoury, leathery notes. Serve at 16–18°C.
Will it age further?
Comfortably. It arrives ready to enjoy thanks to the bodega's long ageing, but well kept it will hold and develop for a decade or more — one reason these bottles are quietly collected.
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