Tour of Wine

On our Wednesday afternoon off we took a wine tasting tour organised by the conference. It cost us 65e a person. This is what we were promised, but during the six-hour trip we only visited two wineries, which were not in the itinerary. The first winery we visited, Bodegas Franco Espaņolas, resides downtown Logroņo, just a block away from the House of Sciences. We did not have a guide, but an ordinary working man in the winery lead us through the cellar. He did not speak any other language but Spanish, so we pretty much relied on other visitors fluent in Spanish and knowledgeable in wine making.

After touring the wine cellars of Bodegas Franco Espaņolas, we had a longish lunch in the winery. For a starter we had potato soup with sausage. For not so orthodox a vegetarian, it was okay, if one just discarded the pieces of sausage. Then we had a couple of plates of mesclun greens to serve each table of about 12 people. The main course was remarkable chunks of lamb. I skipped that part, and felt sorry, I did not stock more on the potato soup. Regarding the tour, we had no idea what was going to happen; we were not told what is on the menu or where we are going next. Serving of the wine worked well, though.

Eventually, after spending more than three hours in that place, we were told to get back on the bus. We were going to visit another winery! The bus ride took us to Laguardia (Rioja Alavesa) in Basque country. There we visited Bodegas Ysios, winery designed by Santiago Calatrava. We tasted one of their red wines (Tempranillo grapes). Wine did not impress , but the beautiful Basque countryside compensated some but not all of the disappointment with the tour.

Above: Wine cellars of Bodegas Franco Espaņolas in Logroņo
Above: Sierra de Cantabria and Bodegas Ysios in Laguardia, Basque Country

From Logroņo to Madrid