Itinerary

Day 1

Labastida (Rioja Alavesa) -
•9:30 am - Meet with your guide in the lobby of the hotel.
•10:00 am - Visit to the Bodegas Remelluri in Labastida for the first wine tasting of the day. This is an old winery in the French chateau style, set against the Cantabria Mountains. The winery produces an excellent Reserve and Gran Reserve wines, recognized around the world for their character.
•11:00 am - We move to the Bodega Solaguen, a wine grower's cooperative society, which produces excellent and elegant tintos (reds) and blancos (white wines). It is a modern winery built in the 60's and expanded in 2006.
•12:30 pm - We next visit the Bodega Agricola Labastida to taste several wines along with a typical Riojan appetizer. This is an old family winery dating from the 13th Century. They produce superb artisan wines in the traditional method and have received many awards in Bordeaux.
•2:00 pm - Lunch today will be at one of our favorite family restaurants in the Rioja, Ariño, where you will be served a traditional lunch accompanied by a local Crianza. The restaurant is well known for its chuleton (a large grilled oxen T-bone steak)
•4:00 pm - Drive back to the hotel.
•The evening is free to visit the medieval walled village of Laguardia with its narrow streets where cars are banned, and where below lay more than 250 wine cellars, some dating back to the early part of the 19th century during the Napoleonic invasion, and used as bomb shelters during the Spanish civil war.

Day 2

Briones (Rioja Alta) -
•9:30 a.m. - Meet with your guide in the lobby of the hotel.
•10:00 a.m. - We start the second day with a visit to the family owned Bodegas Miguel Merino, a small winery offering high-quality, premium wines, producing less than 30,000 bottles annually.
•11:30 a.m. – Following the tour of Miguel Merino, we then visit Dinastia Vivanco and the “Culture of Wine” bodega and museum, one of the best privately owned wine museums in the Rioja.
•2:00 pm - Lunch today will be at the highly acclaimed Los Calaos De Briones in the classic Riojan village of Briones.
•4:30 pm - Following lunch we continue our tour with a visit to the winery Viña Real. The bodega, built in the shape of an enormous oak wine vat, is located on the side of a hill just outside of the village of Laserna. It was designed by the noted French architect Philippe Mazieresi.
•6:30 pm - Drive back to the hotel.

Day 3

Elciego (Rioja Alavesa)
•9:30 am - Meet with your guide in the lobby of the hotel.
•10:00 am - Today we start off with a visit to the Bodegas Viña Salceda, a member of the Chivite Group, in the village of Elciego, which produces a limited production of good, balanced Crianza and excellent Reservas.
•12:00 am - Now we head to one of the most prestigious wineries in the Rioja, the Bodega de Marques de Riscal and the "City of Wine", the spa hotel designed by Frank Gehry in the village of Elciego. The Marques de Riscal, a family owned winery, is one of the oldest labels in the Rioja and produces an extensive collection of prestigious wines.
•2:00 pm - Lunch today will be at the Marques de Riscal restaurant, with world-class cuisine by the great chef Francis Paniego, the first chef of the Rioja to be awarded a Michelin star.
•4:30 pm - Drive back to the hotel.
•The evening is free to explore Laguardia.

Extra Information

Inclusions -

Local guide and transportation

Exclusions -

Dinner is not included

Extras -

Tours are limited to a maximum group of 12 and a minimum of 2. This wine and gastronomy tour is available from the first of March through the end of November.

{italic}Prices are slightly higher during festival dates in the Rioja.{-italic}

We can arrange for a private transfer from Madrid, Barcelona, San Sebastian-Donostia, Bilbao or Pamplona.