Santiago de Compostela, Rías Baixas, Ribeiro, Ribeira Sacra, Valdeorras, Bierzo & León
Galicia & Northern Spain Wine Tour
Overview
Green Spain’s Atlantic Wines: World-class Albariño, Mencía and Godello wines
This food and wine journey will take you through Northwest Spain, visiting Galicia’s most important wine regions along the way. You’ll discover Galicia’s fine wines, tasting Spain’s best white wines made from Albariño and Godello along with expressive reds made from Mencía and other local grapes. You’ll also discover the culinary heritage of northwest Spain, from seafood feasts and hearty country cooking to sublime fine-dining experiences that showcase Galicia’s culinary evolution.
Start in monumental Santiago de Compostela, endpoint of one of Christianity’s most important pilgrimage routes–the Camino. Here you’ll explore the culture and cuisine of Galicia. Then, head to coastal Rías Baixas, home to world-class white Albariños and fish and seafood-based cuisine. Follow Galicia’s rivers inland to lesser-known wine regions. The historic Ribeiro wine region makes fascinating white blends and fresh reds; you’ll meet some of Galicia’s lesser-known indigenous grapes. The steep slopes of Ribeira Sacra are where heroic viticulture happens, and the Mencía reds that come from these river banks are elegant and complex. Deeper into Galicia you’ll visit Valdeorras, where white Godello is at its best, making profound, world-class whites. Come through the mountains into Bierzo, a land of tiny Mencía vineyards and fine, rich wines. Finish your trip in León, a historic city of grandeur with a great tapas scene.
Santiago de Compostela → Rías Baixas → Ribeiro→ Ribeira Sacra→ Valdeorras→ Bierzo→ León
☾ 8 Nights
GALICIA
The sun is noticeably weaker once you cross the mountains that separate Spain’s greenest corner from the bleached expanse that is the rest of the country. The buildings are always forming shadows that leave you cold even on warm days and the adapted locals can always be seen with a jacket nearby if out for more than a brief jaunt. You can feel winter coming here and get the sense that it is always coming, even at high noon. The covered walkways, stone arches over stone sidewalks, will soon beckon to native and pilgrim alike, but when the sun shines the terraces are teeming with life and no one wants to be inside.
Galicia is made of stone, physically and spiritually. You can see it in people’s eyes, their skin. They’ve been hewn from it, battered against the cold stone faces of the coastal cliffs, hauled boulders on their backs to clear their fields, carved it into blocks and tiles and even wheels. Like granite they’re slow to warm but once they do they stay that way, radiating intense energy that can fill a room. This is an old people, defined most of all by their ability to endure, to persist. The cities and towns and villages and pazos and walls are a testament to thousands of years of stubbornness.
The color that dominates the grey of stone is green. Everything is growing everywhere. Grass with exploding patches of clover. Trees with twisted arms covered in ivy and creepers. Thick underbrush with layers upon layers of saplings and bushes and vines and little plants with no name except in the old tongue. Every Gallego seems to need a stone house and a little piece of green land, a direct connection to the earth and its fertility. The little patches of greenery and the thick forests of the hills and mountains are the most noticeable differences from the rest of Spain, but they also speak to the character of the people. The Gallego has a fundamental mistrust of modernity and sophistication that stems from and manifests through their connection to the land. The fields and streams of the ancestral village are the source of truth and morality here. The great cities of Galicia have risen up with industry and culture, but the heart of each citizen lives in the forest with the pagan deities whose names are lost to time but whose significance has never waned.
GALICIAN CUISINE
Galician cuisine is famous for its seafood. Less well known are the inland dishes using beef, pork, octopus and garden produce. The pride of Galicia is pulpo, octopus caught laboriously in the rocky inlets of the coast but served all over the region, commonly in thin slices on a wooden plate and dusted with Spanish paprika. The coastal towns and cities seem to overflow with seafood that anywhere else would be reserved for the finest restaurants: white and blue fish perfect for grilling or baking; clams and mussels and a galaxy of shellfish with no real English translations; crabs and shrimp and lobsters and delicacies like percebes, alien-looking goose barnacles beloved by locals and visitors. The countryside cooking of Galicia reveres the pig and the cow, featuring sausages and hams and cheeses that change from village to village. The soups and stews of Galician home cooking are hearty and often use local greens and potatoes. It's a totally different cuisine from anywhere else in Spain, perhaps finding more kinship with the tables of northern Portugal, but Galicia is certainly among the best places in Spain to eat great food.
Galician cuisine combines the bounty of its extensive Atlantic coastline with the hearty flavors of the countryside and the mountains. To go with a distinct cuisine, you need distinct wines, and Galicia has an abundance of unique wine. The coastal areas of the Rías Baixas are home to the Albariño grape, the iconic Galician white and frequent companion of local seafood. The best Galician Albariños are among the greatest white wines available anywhere, with depth, complexity, and the potential to age for years in bottle. The inland regions of Galicia, less known than the coast, are home to several wine regions making truly stunning wines today. Ribeira Sacra, Valdeorras, and Bierzo form a trio of regions where the red Mencía and white Godello grapes dominate and produce widely varying styles of wine that transmit soil and geography into the glass. The rise of these regions has put Galicia on the global wine map for more than Albariño. Even lesser known Ribeiro, with its rich variety of indigenous grapes, has become a source of excitement. The subtlety of Galician wines is refreshing, but the quality speaks for itself. Galician wines are here to stay among Spanish wine royalty.
SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA
Santiago de Compostela is the cultural, political and spiritual heart of Galicia. Santiago became the endpoint of one of Europe’s main pilgrimage routes (The Camino, or Way of St. James) in the 9th century. The shrine of Santiago is the Cathedral, begun in the 11th century. Today the city’s Old Town is a Unesco World Heritage Site and home to an amazing array of medieval, Renaissance and Baroque architecture.
RÍAS BAIXAS
Rías Baixas is the most famous wine region in Galicia, though it is often known simply by its characteristic grape: Albariño. Rías are inlets of the Atlantic similar to fjords. They give the vineyards a very strong Atlantic influence, and the humidity means the vines must be trained on high trellises to prevent mildew. Soils in the heart of Rías Baixas are granitic. Nearly all wine here is white and dominated by Albariño. These wines are fresh with lively acidity that makes them the perfect pairing with the local seafood-dominated cuisine.
RIBEIRO
Ribeiro lies upriver from the Rías Baixas, a very fertile area with green hills and rivers crisscrossing the landscape where wine has been made for hundreds of years. Ribeiro produces excellent white wines mainly from Treixadura, typically blended with Loureira, Albariño, Godello, or other indigenous varieties. About 10 percent of Ribeiro is red, made from the indigenous Souson and Brancellao grapes, among others, and the reds can be extraordinarily fresh and lively. Ribeiro wine has long been popular with Galicians, but today the unique wines of Ribeiro are exciting palates further afield.
RIBEIRA SACRA
Ribeira Sacra is the most visually impressive wine region in Spain, with near-vertical vineyards sloping down the sides of several river valleys. Making wine here is extraordinarily difficult, but the resultant wines are nearly as incredible as the landscape. The poor slate and granite soils and relatively Atlantic climate of Ribeira Sacra produce extremely elegant, subtle reds from the Mencía grape, as well as reds from other indigenous grapes and occasional white wines. Ribeira Sacra has long been unknown outside of Galicia, but the wines from this remote area are among Galicia's most sought-after.
VALDEORRAS
Valdeorras, up river from Ribeira Sacra in the deepest interior reaches of Galicia, is a region synonymous with the white grape Godello and slate soils. It’s here that Godello has found its most acclaimed expression, deep and mineral and capable of holding its own against the world’s finest whites. Slate soils, best known in Spain for their prevalence in the Priorat, are the source of many of the finest Valdeorras wines. Like Ribeira Sacra, the vineyards of Valdeorras slope down in river valleys, though not at the same impossible angles as in Ribeira Sacra. The uncommon red wines of Valdeorras usually use Mencía, and as in other areas of Galicia rare indigenous grapes are being used more and more frequently.
BIERZO
While Bierzo is technically outside of Galicia, its wines are intimately linked to those of the Galician regions. Red Mencía and white Godello are the dominant grapes in Bierzo, achieving their fullest expression here. Varied soils and microclimates alongside a wealth of old vines (over half of vines here are over 60 years old) have allowed Bierzo to become one of Spain’s elite wine regions. Homegrown stars like Raúl Pérez have been joined by outsiders like Álvaro Palacios of Priorat fame, pushing the region upward and towards a Burgundian model of single-vineyard and village wines. Along with Ribeira Sacra and Valdeorras, Bierzo has brought Mencía and Godello to the forefront of Spanish wine.
LEÓN
The northwestern city of Spain's central plateau, León is an undiscovered jewel. Home to a rich architectural and historic heritage, León is charming and welcoming. It’s famous among knowledgeable Spaniards for its food scene. The tapas bars of the city center overflow, with each drink coming with one, two, or even three tapas! And the hearty cuisine served in the traditional restaurants features ingredients from the surrounding countryside, with emphasis on local dry-aged beef.
Santiago de Compostela, Rías Baixas, Ribeiro, Ribeira Sacra, Valdeorras, Bierzo & León
Galicia & Northwest Spain Wine Tour
DAY 1
THE CAMINO TO SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA
Start your trip in the historic city of Santiago de Compostela. Your first evening will take you into the Galician night for a tapas crawl with your guide. The city’s bars serve everything from Spanish tortilla to shellfish washed down with local Galician wine.
Arrive in Santiago de Compostela by train or plane
Private transfer to your hotel
Santiago de Compostela tapas tour dinner
Overnight Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela Tapas Tour Dinner
Santiago is one of Spain’s great tapas cities, and your local guide will take you on a lunchtime exploration of the old town’s watering holes. From inland specialties like Spanish tortilla, creamy cheeses and salty lacón (Galician ham) to shellfish and Galicia’s superlative octopus, you can try a sampling of the region’s cuisine across the bars lining Santiago’s cobbled streets. Wash down bites with diverse Galician wine, from fresh white Albariño and Ribeiro to deep red Mencía from the interior.
DAY 2
SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA WALKING & MICHELIN STARS
Discover Santiago’s old town, the towering cathedral, and the city’s importance as a destination for pilgrims from around the world on a private walking tour of the city. Head out into the countryside for a grill-focused fine dining lunch at Asador O’Pazo. Return to Santiago before dinner at Lucia Freitas’s vegetable-focused A Tafona in the heart of the city.
Santiago de Compostela walking tour
Lunch at Asador O’Pazo in Padrón
Dinner at A Tafona
Overnight Santiago de Compostela
Santiago de Compostela Walking Tour
Explore the historic center of Santiago and learn about its history, particularly the origins of the city’s name and the source of pride and prosperity, the Camino de Santiago (Way of Saint James) pilgrimage. You’ll visit the UNESCO World Heritage Cathedral, a towering monument whose construction began in the 11th century and the final destination for the pilgrims who walk to the city from across Spain and even Europe.
Lunch at Asador O’Pazo (1 Michelin star)
Most people, if they know the Galician town of Padrón at all, know it for the oft-spicy peppers produced there. Some might know that the Portuguese Camino de Santiago goes through town. Yet there is another, more exciting reason to come to town: Asador O’Pazo. The Vidal brothers who run the restaurant come from a restaurant family, but took it upon themselves to enter the fine dining world. What do they serve at O’Pazo? The best Galician product, simply put. Produce from the surrounding countryside and fresh fish and seafood from fishing ports just a short drive away. One brother has mastered the art of the grill, a tool that is used throughout the tasting menu, but there’s plenty of curing, fermenting and other special techniques here as well. An obsessive precision has made O’Pazo a destination restaurant, garnering a Michelin star and a visit from Noma’s René Redzipi. Padrón, like some of the other small towns of Spain, has been put on the world map thanks to this excellent restaurant.
Dinner at A Tafona (1 Michelin star)
Lucía Freitas is one of Galicia’s most exciting chefs, and A Tafona is her flagship. What began as a tapas restaurant almost 15 years ago is now one of Galicia’s most talked-about restaurants bearing a Michelin star since 2018. The space, in a restored stone building, puts you at ease immediately, ready to enjoy a gastronomic journey. The tasting menus at A Tafona bring together Galician produce, fish and seafood into elegant, subtle dishes. Freitas travels frequently to Japan, a fact that has influenced her cuisine, but the products used here are pure Galicia, often sourced from Santiago’s splendid central market or trusted suppliers. It’s worth noting that Freitas is one of the few chefs in Spain who offers the option of a vegetable-based menu. This is an essential dining experience to taste the cutting edge and future of Galician cuisine.
DAY 3
ALBARIÑO WINE: SPAIN’S FINE WHITE WINE
Head to the Galician coast, where Albariño vines grow along the Atlantic inlets of the Rías Baixas. Start with visits to two wineries who helped bring Albariño to global fame: Pazo de Señorans and Palacio de Fefiñans. Seafood lunch in Cambados at Taberna do Trasno will give you a taste of the finest local cuisine. Dinner will be a wine-pairing masterclass in Sanxenxo, with Galician fish and seafood paired with rare wines from across the region.
Private transfer to the Rías Baixas wine region
Pazo de Señorans winery visit
Lunch at Taberna do Trasno in Cambados
Palacio de Fefiñans winery visit
Wine-pairing dinner in Sanxenxo
Overnight Pepe Vieira Hotel, Rías Baixas
Pazo de Señorans Winery Visit
Housed in a beautifully restored 14th-century palace surrounded by gardens and vineyards, Pazo de Señorans is an enchanting place. The property was bought in the 1970s by Marisol Bueno, who would become the first president of the Rías Baixas Regulatory Board. Marisol and her family restored the property and planted vineyards there before they began making wine in the 1980s. The wines of Pazo de Señorans have risen to become some of the most famous and sought-after Albariños in the world. You’ll only find stainless steel in the winery, to allow the grape to shine through. The young Pazo Señorans Albariño is a textbook example, often used around the world to train sommeliers. The house specialty, however, is long-aged Albariño. The wine called Collección comes from the same vineyards as the young wine, but spends three years aging in bottle as proof of the aging potential of a wine with just five months on its lees. The flagship is Selección de Añada, sourced from a single vineyard and aged for nearly three years on its lees and years more in bottle before release. Many consider Selección to be one of the finest white wines in Galicia and all of Spain. Pazo de Señorans is also a boutique producer of orujo, a Galician spirit made from grape skins and seeds similar to Italian grappa. Seeing the traditional pot stills that are still used here is like stepping back in time. Both the unflavored Orujo and the herb-infused Aguardiente de Hierbas are among the best in the region and worth trying. Pazo de Señorans is one of the best Albariño producers and a stunning place to discover the aging potential of Galicia’s favorite white grape.
Lunch at Taberna do Trasno
The fishing and wine village of Cambados is known for good eating. Taberna do Trasno is a cozy restaurant in the streets of the old town, with a dining room lined with booths. On the menu of this creative spot, you’ll find the best local fish and shellfish, much of it grilled over wood, alongside creative dishes that reimagine typical dishes. The wine list is notable, especially when it comes to Albariños from the best nearby wineries.
Palacio de Fefiñans Winery Visit
The Fefiñanes Palace occupies half of the main square of the seaside village of Cambados, the most important wine town in Rías Baixas. Part of the beautiful 17th-century estate is home to the Palacio de Fefiñanes winery, which still belongs to a branch of the noble family who built the palace. Fefiñanes is one of the oldest and most storied producers of Albariño. The fresh young Albariño de Fefiñanes is bottled with the same label as in its first vintage in 1928. It ferments in stainless steel today, and is bottled shortly after fermentation finishes, yielding a top quality “vino del año” style. Fefiñanes helped pioneer the aging of Albariño in barrel with 1583, a rounder, fuller wine that exemplifies the versatility of the grape. The most famous wine from this producer is surely the III Año, a stunningly complex example of aged and ageworthy Albariño that spends over two years aging on its lees in stainless steel before release. Between its beautiful location and top quality wines, Palacio de Fefiñanes is a must for any wine lover visiting the Rías Baixas.
Wine-pairing Dinner in Sanxenxo
Lunch will be at a seaside restaurant in the coastal village of Sanxenxo. The restaurant offers views of the ocean and fishing boats, but the food and wine are what make this a destination. The menu is based around local seafood, freshly caught and subtly prepared, with respect for traditional recipes and techniques. What takes this spot above and beyond is the wine. The owner is a true wine lover and his restaurant is a destination for wine enthusiasts from all over Spain. He’ll serve you a pairing with your lunch that’ll serve as a masterclass in the wines of Galicia and the Rías Baixas in particular. Rare vintages and small production wines are sure to appear, and by the time you stroll down the waterfront and reflect on your day, you’ll have a broad perspective on the fine wines of this unique part of Spain.
DAY 4
ALBARIÑO CULT WINES
Head into the villages of the Rías Baixas to visit two artisan producers of cult Albariños. Santiago Roma makes fine Albariños, including a white aged in his custom-designed granite eggs. Albamar’s Xurxo Alba’s complex whites are sought after around the world. Refresh yourself in O Grove with a seafood feast at D’Berto, the restaurant adored by Spain’s gastronomes. Unwind and enjoy your hotel before dinner in at Pepe Vieira in your hotel. Chef Pepe’s cooking brings together ancestral Galician recipes, creative techniques and hyper-local ingredients: this is a world-class restaurant with two Michelin stars.
Santiago Roma winery visit
Albamar winery visit
Lunch at D’Berto Restaurant
Dinner at Pepe Vieira
Overnight Pepe Vieira Hotel, Rías Baixas
Santiago Roma Winery Visit
As soon as you meet Santiago Roma, you begin to see the character of his project. He’s an intense, earnest man from a vine-growing family in Rías Baixas who has built the winery that bears his name through hard work and attention to detail. Santiago is the wine and the wine is him. His parents live next to the winery, which is small and practical and lies in the basement of an old Galician house. Everything is Albariño here in the heart of the Val do Salnés. Three superb examples of clean, fresh Albariño define the essence of Santiago Roma, varying in their time on lees and vine age. Each is superb, expressing the concentration and elegance of the surrounding vineyards which Santiago works with artisan practices and attention to detail. The most famous wine here is also the hardest to find: Pedranai. This unique Albariño ferments and ages with lees in a granite egg of Santiago’s own design. It’s a wine that made such waves that Santiago had to start a new business to produce the vessels for other wineries! The complexity of Pedranai is stunning, though its limited production means you must take any chance you have to try it. Santiago never stands still for long, and has also launched a sparkling Albariño and a beer made from Albariño.
Albamar Winery Visit
When Xurxo Alba took over the family winery in 2006, the Albariño wines made there were not being bottled; instead the wine was sold in bulk at the family’s humble bar. Xurxo began bottling wines and transforming the vineyards with sustainable practices. Today, Albamar is one of the most exciting producers in the Rías Baixas. Xurxo’s Albariños, which he ferments using native yeasts, have a concentration and minerality rarely seen in a region where very light wines are the norm. Albamar wines have made their way onto the wine lists of Spain’s best restaurants and his rare experimental wines are sought-after and rare.
Lunch at D’Berto
On a nondescript street in the Galician town of O Grove lies one of the greatest seafood restaurants in Spain. The outside of D’Berto hints at the pleasures that await with a tank showcasing stunning examples of crabs, lobsters, and other delicacies from the rías of the Galician coast. This family restaurant has specialized in serving up the largest and rarest pieces of seafood and fish from the region. Everything is seasonal and based on what is available in the market. The best bet is to let Berto, one half of the brother and sister team behind the restaurant, guide you on your journey. Expect to feast on everything from clams and oysters to lobsters and baked fish. You’ll also find a great wine cellar at D’Berto, focused on elite and small producers from Galicia and other wines from Spain and the wider world that pair well with the clean, fresh seafood. This is a good place to try sparkling Albariño.
Dinner at Pepe Viera (2 Michelin stars)
Pepe Vieira sits in the middle of the green countryside of the Rías Baixas, surrounded by forest and small plots of vineyards. It’s a peaceful location in which to enjoy some of Galicia’s most exciting and innovative cuisine. Chef Xosé, known as Pepe, worked in world-class kitchens around the world before returning to his native Galicia. Now, two decades later, Pepe’s restaurant is a Galician icon. The impeccably designed dining room puts you face to face with the countryside. That’s not a coincidence. Vieira’s cuisine brings forgotten dishes and neglected ingredients from the local area into the spotlight. Technical excellence and a visual flair come together with garden and ocean ingredients, among others, to make Vieira’s tasting menus flow and delight. Behind the elegance and luxury, however, this unique restaurant is dedicated to the spirit of Galicia. Tasting menus are named for local myths and legends, and Xosé partnered with a local anthropologist to bring local traditions to fine dining. In a way, Pepe Vieira is modern Galicia in a nutshell: ancient culture and hyper-local traditions combined with single-minded excellence and modernity.
DAY 5
RIBEIRO & RIBEIRA SACRA WINE REGIONS
Head into the Galician interior, tracing the River Sil into Ribeiro and Ribera Sacra. Start with a tasting of white and red Ribeiro blends at Coto de Gomariz. Then, discover the precipitous slopes and slate soils of Ribeira Sacra during a wine-pairing lunch at Adega Algueira. Cruise between cliffs on the Sil River in Ribeira Sacra before heading to Monforte de Lemos for the night.
Transfer to the Ribeiro wine region
Coto de Gomariz winery visit
Transfer to the Ribeira Sacra wine region
Adega Algueira wine-pairing lunch
Sil River boat ride
Dinner in Monforte de Lemos
Overnight Parador de Monforte de Lemos
Coto de Gomariz Winery Visit
The Coto de Gomariz estate’s history dates back to the 10th century. Today the winery is one of the finest producers in the Ribeiro region, sometimes a little forgotten compared to other Galician appellations. This family-owned winery has helped vindicate the native grape varieties of Ribeiro and refined techniques for making fine wines from grapes like red Sousón and white Treixadura that were once almost forgotten. Coto de Gomariz is a benchmark for Ribeiro and Galician wine as a whole.
Adega Algueira Wine-tasting Lunch
Adega Algueira is a luminary in Ribeira Sacra, helping to prove that the dangerous slopes of the region can produce world-class wines. The family behind Algueira has spent decades with the vineyards of this region, and today they make some of the most subtle, elegant wines in all of Spain. Algueira uses the flagship grapes of Ribeira Sacra, Mencía and Godello, alongside rare indigenous grapes that they coax into producing truly unique bottlings. Taste Algueira’s wines during a wine-pairing lunch at the winery.
Boat Journey on the River Sil
Take an amazing hour-long boat journey along the river Sil through an impressive canyon with fantastic views of the vineyards on impossible slopes.
Dinner in Monforte de Lemos
Head to a restaurant in the village of Monforte de Lemos for a dinner of traditional Galician country cooking and local wine.
DAY 6
MENCÍA & GODELLO WINES IN RIBEIRA SACRA & VALDEORRAS
Go deeper into Galician wine. Start with Mencía-based reds and rare white Ribeira Sacra wines at Domino do Bibei. Lunch will be in the Valdeorras region before a white wine masterclass at Valdesil. Valdesil is one of the finest producers of Godello, which shines at its most mineral in Valdeorras. Finish your day by heading to Villafranca del Bierzo to rest up for more Mencía country.
Dominio do Bibei winery visit
Transfer to the Valdeorras wine region
Lunch in Valdeorras
Valdesil winery visit
Transfer to the Bierzo wine region
Dinner at Méndez La Guardia in Villafranca del Bierzo
Overnight Posada Las Doñas del Portazgo, Villafranca del Bierzo
Dominio do Bibei Winery Visit & Tasting
Dominio do Bibei is a modern winery founded in 2002, but in two decades they’ve managed to become one of Ribeira Sacra’s most respected names. Even though the winery is young the vines they use are up to 100 years old. Dominio do Bibei specializes in making Mencía reds from the schist and granite soils, releasing some of the most acclaimed Mencías available. They also make white wines from Godello and make use of other indigenous grapes like Mouratón and Caíño.
Lunch in Valdeorras Wine Region
Stop for lunch upon arriving in the Valdeorras wine region
Valdesil Winery Visit & Tasting
Valdesil, a family-owned winery in the heart of Valdeorras, is a Godello specialist. Not just any Godello, for Valdesil has among the oldest vines of the grape around, including a single enormous vine dating back to 1885. These vineyards are the key at Valdesil, providing the raw material for several varietal Godellos as well as a pair of Mencía reds. Weather permitting the wine tasting will be outside on an enormous slate table built around an oak tree!
Dinner at Méndez La Guardia in Villafranca del Bierzo
Enjoy a dinner of traditional Bierzo cuisine at Méndez La Guardia. Here you’ll find local countryside ingredients, from local beef and game to produce and trout from the nearby rivers. The cellar is packed full of great Bierzo wine, as must be the case in the heart of the wine region.
DAY 7
ARTISAN BIERZO WINES
Through the mountains that separate Galicia from the rest of Spain, Bierzo is a land of Mencía excellence. It’s here that this red grape achieves its most varied and deep expression. Start at Raúl Pérez’s family winery Castro Ventosa. Raúl is the bearded visionary who has put Bierzo on the map. Taste single-vineyard Mencías and other artisan wines. Then it’s on to Verónica Ortega, a talented winemaker whose Bierzo wines are unique and expressive. Lunch will be at a traditional Bierzo restaurant for hearty cuisine and more local wine.
Castro Ventosa winery visit
Verónica Ortega winery visit
Traditional lunch in Bierzo
Overnight Posada Las Doñas del Portazgo, Villafranca del Bierzo
Castro Ventosa Winery Visit & Tasting
If there’s one name synonymous with the rise of Galician wine, it’s Raúl Pérez. With his mountain-man beard and beaming eyes, Perez's work as a consultant helped fine wines emerge from the excellent but neglected vineyards of Galicia. Castro Ventosa is Pérez's family winery, where his talent with the Mencía grape is on full display. Castro Ventosa owns some of the best old vineyards in the Bierzo. Here Pérez and his nephew César Márquez, a talented winemaker in his own right, make both deliciously drinkable Mencías and single-vineyard jewels that age beautifully. Visiting the winery with a member of the family and tasting wines that transmit a sense of place is the best way to understand Mencía and Bierzo.
Verónica Ortega Winery Visit & Tasting
Andalusian native Verónica Ortega’s pedigree includes working with Domaine de la Romanée Conti and Álvaro Palacios, and when she set out to make her own wine she chose Bierzo, prime terroir for Mencía. In just over a decade Ortega has become one of the region's most exciting winemakers. She seeks to express the unique characteristics of each of the vineyards she owns or rents, sometimes using unusual vessels like amphoras to age her wines. Ortega is forging a new style and a new path in the Bierzo that is gaining her more acclaim every day.
Traditional lunch in Bierzo Wine Region
Stop for lunch in a nearby village in the Bierzo.
DAY 8
LEÓN TAPAS & HISTORY
End your exploration of northwest Spain in the lively city of León, full of history, leonés food and wine. A local guide will take you on a walking tour of the old town, including visits to the city’s two ornate churches. At night, celebrate with local cuisine at the multitude of tapas bars that line the streets of the city center.
Transfer to the city of León
Private walking tour of León
León tapas tour dinner
Overnight León
Private Walking Tour of León
Join a local expert guide for a walking tour of the historic center and most important monuments of the city of León, including the magnificent cathedral and the Basilica of San Isodoro, known as the “Sistine Chapel of Spain.”
Tapas Tour Dinner in León
In the evening, embark on an exploration of León’s tapas bars. León is famous for its bustling tapas bars, each serving their own specialties. The city center fills with locals who pack bar after bar snacking on everything from local charcuterie to rich stews and meats, all washed down with excellent wine from nearby wine country.
DAY 9
DEPARTURE
Take the high-speed train from León to Madrid to continue your trip
HOTELS
Santiago de Compostela Hotel - 2 nights
Parador de Santiago de Compostela
Rías Baixas Hotel - 2 nights
Ribeira Sacra Hotel - 1 night
Parador de Monforte de Lemos, Monforte de Lemos
Bierzo Hotel - 2 nights
Posada Las Doñas del Portazgo, Villafranca del Bierzo
León Hotel - 1 night
INCLUDED
8 nights hotel, double occupancy
breakfast daily
lunches while wine touring
expert private guides & local specialists
private premium tastings at wineries
deluxe air-conditioned private transport
Epicurean Ways expertise
in-country support
NOT INCLUDED
extras in hotels such as room service, minibars, etc.
travel insurance (recommended) Note that TravelSafe travel insurance can be arranged through Epicurean Ways
tips to guides and drivers (not required but appreciated)
flights to and from Spain
A note on winery visits, restaurant selections and hotels
All tours, experiences and hotels are subject to availability and will be confirmed upon booking the trip.
You will be accompanied by a driver-guide during your wine touring. Your visits and tastings will be private and with the winemaker, a family member or an expert who knows the winery and the wines well. We work with the wineries to make sure that you taste the best and most representative wines during each visit. It is sometimes possible to arrange extended tastings that include old vintages or rare wines. We have an extensive group of wineries whose owners we know and with whom we work regularly, so we can guarantee high-level visits even if a winery has to be substituted. If you have an interest in visiting a particular producer please let us know.
We include restaurant concierge service as part of your trip. Note that our restaurant suggestions are just that–suggestions. Places we love, places to go back to time after time. We recommend these places after years of experience eating in Spain and Portugal together with frequent research and input from our local partners. We aspire to guide your choices with information on the styles of cuisine and restaurants; the choice on where to eat is yours based on your preferences and desires.
We have extensive experience with hotels ranging from 5-star luxury properties to private boutique hotels. Let us know your preferences and we will tailor the hotel choices for you.
TRIP PRICES
Note that we can customize this trip for you. Add days in your arrival or departure city or in other locations or make changes to the experiences, winery visits, restaurants, or hotels included in the trip. Whatever it is, we’re here to work with you. Once you’re happy with the trip plan and have some idea of your dates we will calculate and send you the price.