Spanish Wine Tours
Yes, we also run wine tours and have been doing so for over 25 years. The Tour Director who travels with these holidays is Stephen Barrett, the well known broadcaster and writer and wine lecturer. Check out his personal website www.stephenbarrett.com to learn more.Most of our groups are private ones from Wine Clubs, Societies, Firms etc but we do have an excellent small public programme for individuals. If you are interested in running your own tour please contact us to discuss the matter further. The tours shown are our public programme but are in no way the complete picture. We are happy to arrange a tour to any destination.
Spain, Ribera del Duero 6 days
This
region could be said to be the Spanish secret. Usually, La Rioja is the centre
of attention when it comes to Spanish wines and this central area rarely gets a
mention. This is possibly because production is low and the Spanish themselves
rush to buy before any can escape abroad.
Very few British wine enthusiasts make it into the area and because we are such a rarity we have found an extremely warm welcome from the locals on our travels. It’s definitely a new experience for most people and we can thoroughly recommend both the wine and the region to you and unravel their secrets!
This tour starts the moment you board the ship at Plymouth. The “Pont Aven” is Brittany Ferries’ flagship and the £100m state of the art, 40,000 tonne vessel has all the amenities of a cruise liner. The 19-hour crossing to Spain is very much part of the experience. A 2-berth cabin is allocated.
We sail at 1600 and once on board Stephen will be presenting a tutored tasting of the wines we will meet in Spain , followed by dinner.
We
reach
Santander
at 1230 on the second day and drive southwards into
Castile
. By now you will be feeling thirsty so we make a stop in Fuensaldana to taste
at the small and super-friendly Bodegas Emeterio Fernandez. We now amble
on to check into the 4 Star Hotel Melia in central
Valladolid
for three nights. We have dinner at the hotel on the first night. The Old
Quarter of Valladolid is just a few steps outside the front door of the hotel.
Next day we travel back towards Palencia and shortly afterwards we will turn off the main road to Valoria la Buena in the Cigales region to visit Bodegas Pilcar to sample their prize-winning wines. We move on after this visit to Serrada in the Rueda region where we are going to visit the extremely friendly Bodegas Alberto Gutierrez for a visit and tasting. After the tasting we stroll across the road for a typical regional lunch at a small restaurant opposite the establishment.
We return to the hotel in the late afternoon and you’ll have some time to sightsee in Valladolid .
On
Wednesday we are travelling eastwards following the River Duero towards the
principal town of the region, Aranda de Duero. Just outside the town we head for
our first visit to the historic Real Sitio de Ventosilla where we will enjoy a
visit and tasting. After this visit we will now drive to Pesquera to visit the
exceptional Tinto Pesquera for a tasting and lunch at Condado de Haza. In the
late afternoon we start back to the hotel but make a stop at Peñafiel.
Dominated by its castle where there is a wine museum, this small town has one of
the largest and oldest main squares in
Spain
and we’ll spend a few moments here sightseeing.
We will leave on Thursday and set off for the short journey to Rueda and our final tasting will be at Marques de Riscal around 1030. We now continue to Santander for the 1530 sailing to England . We have dinner on board to discuss our visit to Spain .This reaches Plymouth at 0930 on the sixth day.
The cost includes: cruise-ferry crossing to Spain with 2-berth cabin; travel by executive coach; tasting and two dinners on board; three nights’ accommodation at a 4* hotel with buffet breakfast and dinner on the first night; two lunches in country; all tastings and excursions; services of Stephen Barrett as expert Tour Manager.
Departure date 2008
May 25th £545 Single supplement £90
Online Booking Form
Spain, La Rioja 6 days
We've been running this immensely successful tour for several years and have revised it almost entirely for 2008 in order to introduce new bodegas and a new hotel. The Hotel Marques de Vallejo is a comfortable 3* establishment just off the main square and near to the cathedral. It couldn't be more central. This very interesting region is very welcoming and everyone will be at home with its fine wines and superb gastronomy.
We set off from Plymouth on the "Pont Aven", flagship of Brittany Ferries' fleet and we begin with an on-board tutored tasting followed by dinner.
Next morning we reach Spain and set off southwards via Bilbao to Fuenmayor just outside Logroño for our first tasting at Bodegas Corral. We then continue into the city to check into the Hotel Marques de Vallejo for three nights. Dinner tonight is at a nearby restaurant which enjoys an outstanding reputation.
On Tuesday we set off for Haro to visit Lopez de Heredia Vina Tondonia, reputed to be the oldest bodega in Haro. Lunch will be taken at the Remelluri Estate, we could never drop that visit, and then we'll go to Laguardia for sightseeing. In the evening the Tour Escort will show you the way to the famous street of tapas bars, Calle Laurel.
On Wednesday we drive towards Haro to visit the newly inaugurated "City of Wine" designed by Frank Gehry at Marques de Riscal. We have another lengthy lunch at Cassalareina and then drive to visit Bodegas Montecillo.
We depart the hotel on Thursday and travel northwards to Bilbao for a visit to another Frank Gehry project, the Guggenheim Museum of Modern Art. We continue to Santander in the early afternoon to catch the 1530 sailing to England. Our final dinner together is taken on board. We reach Plymouth at 0900 on Friday morning and the coach then returns to the original pick up points.
The cost includes: cruise-ferry crossing to Spain with 2-berth cabin; travel by executive coach; tasting and two dinners on board; three nights’ accommodation at a 3 Star hotel with buffet breakfast; dinner on the first night at Restaurante El Portalon; two lunches in country; all tastings and excursions; services of Stephen Barrett as expert Tour Manager.
Departure date 2008
September 21st Please contact us about this departure
October 26th £545 Single supplement £90
Online Booking Form
Pick up points:
Bath: Bristol: Taunton Deane: Exeter: Newton Abbot: Plymouth