Why Rioja is an oenophile’s dream

A place where wineries are given as much architectural admiration as any modern-art gallery, and tapas bars serve word-class wines next to the sprawling vineyards from which they came, Rioja is for the wine-lovers and culture-seekers. Wine writer, Nina Caplan is here to tell you why

An architect’s dream

Rioja, a gorgeous region just an hour from Bilbao, has made wine since Roman times. Today, the Marques de Riscal blends this sense of history with new age design – attached to the original building is a magnificent fantasy by Frank Gehry, who also designed Bilbao’s Guggenheim Museum. Here, the sun tints the titanium from gold and pink to a darker purple as sunset approaches, like a white Rioja followed by a rosé, then by a red. And this, while the best known (it’s probably the world’s most famous winery hotel), is far from the only amazing combination of wine and architecture in Rioja. At the foot of the Sierra de Cantabria mountains sits the extraordinary Ysios winery, with undulating roof and cedar walls, designed by Santiago Calatrava. To showcase Bodegas López de Heredia’s hand-dug 1890 winery, the late Zaha Hadid created an annexe that resembles a wine decanter. And naturally, all these beautiful wineries have tasting rooms for thirsty architecture fans….

A gourmet’s paradise

Food in Rioja lives up to the wine that accompanies it – that is to say, it is superb on every level, from the tapas crawl through small bars (around 50, all crammed together, each with its specialist pinchos, or snacks) along Calle del Laurel in Logroño to La Vieja Bodega, a restaurant with a Michelin Bib Gourmand in a 17th-century cellar in Casalarreina. Or, try Francis Paniego’s El Portal in Ezcaray, which has two Michelin stars. Another fabulous designer winery, Bodegas Baigorri, an elegant glass box designed by local architect Iñaki Aspiazu, has an excellent restaurant from which you look out onto vineyards and mountains. When dining out, make a beeline for lamb, a famously good match for the red Rioja wine, or try summer specialties, such as fried squid and chorizo slow-cooked in cider, with rich white wines and deep pink rosés.

Easy, scenic access to Spain’s finest wines…

The three main zones of Rioja Oriental (formerly known as Baja), Rioja Alta and Rioja Alavesa stretch for about 120km along the pretty River Ebro, and while Logroño is the regional centre the nearby towns of Viana, Calahorra, Nájera and Elciego all have their own distinct charm. Haro, close to Bilbao, is immensely handsome, full of smart houses built by wealthy nobles and crammed with wineries where you can just walk in and taste; and Laguardia is a fine example of a medieval walled town. For more information, see Wine Routes of Spain – there are two in the region, Rioja Alavesa Wine Route and Rioja Alta Wine Route, both more than worth the journey.

… and Spain’s religious heritage

No wine-lover, whatever their personal beliefs, can fail to be grateful to the Catholic Church for its help in making Rioja the great wine region it is today. The monks, needing wine for the Eucharist, showed their appreciation of God’s bounty by making that wine as good as it possibly could be. Santo Domingo de la Calzada is an important stop on the pilgrims’ route to Santiago de Compostela; the beautiful Yuso monastery is a UNESCO-listed World Heritage Site and the birthplace of modern Spanish, including the first Spanish writing on wine. Casa Primicia is the oldest building in Laguardia; here, the Church once collected its taxes. Today, its beautifully restored cellars are used to store wine, and tourists can take a tour and eat lunch (with wine, seguro) in the lovingly restored premises or on a vine-shoot grill in the gardens.

A haven for lovers of art and culture

There are works by abstract sculptor Sir Anthony Caro in the vineyards at Viña Real, yet another extraordinary winery that was carved out of the mountain by French architect Philippe Mazieres. At Vivanco winery, in Briones, a gigantic museum honours the history of winemaking, from Roman amphorae (a wine-drinking jug) to paintings by Joan Miró. For those who like their culture a little more open-air, there are festivals and outdoor festivities around the region all through the summer, such as the Rioja Wine Harvest Festival in mid-September, which features bull-running, parades and, of course, plenty of good food and wine.

To find out more about Rioja, visit riojawine.com

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