Wine Roads: Catalan Wine Country
Costa Brava, Penedès, Priorat
March through November
9 days/8 nights
Begin your Wine Roads of Spain journey on the Costa Brava, a rugged coast crowned by white villages overlooking the sunny Mediterranean. Experience private hosted winery visits in four appellation—Priorat, Penedès, CAVA and Alt Ampordàn. Chocolates and cheeses, cooking and strolling Barcelona’s chic streets will add to your taste of Spain journey.
Day 1 BARCELONA • COSTA BRAVA
Meet in Barcelona late morning to begin your tour. Transfer to Girona, often called Barcelona in miniature. Enjoy a light appetizers style lunch in Girona and a walking tour of the medieval heart of this very elegant small city. Continue to the coast for a two night stay at a hotel overlooking the Mediterranean. Time to rest, explore the beach, play tennis, swim, soak in the hot tub before Welcome Reception & dinner.
Overnight: Hotel Aiguablava L D
Day 2 COSTA BRAVA
This area is famous for several artists, among them Salvador Dalí. Begin today with a visit to Cap de Creus and Dalí’s birthplace at Cadaqués. Continue to the village of Port Lligat where he lived most of his life with his muse Gala; tour the cobbled- together fishermen’s cottages that comprised his home and studio and enjoy the bay he so often painted. Continue to Figueres, to tour the Dalí Museum & Theater. Free time to wander and have lunch. Return to the hotel via the beautiful walled medieval village of Pals with its many craftsmen. Free time before dinner. Evening Tasting of the Wines of Alt Ampurdàn.
Overnight: as above B D
Day 3 COSTA BRAVA • PENEDÈS
This area of Alt Ampurdan is known for olive oils and increasingly for its wines. The vineyards are bounded by the Pyrenees and France to the north, and by the Mediterranean to the east, creating a microclimate that favors many French varietals, including Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. Visit to Bodega Mas Estela, an exceptional winery. Traveling southwesterly, with a light lunch en route, you’ll enter the Penedès and CAVA appellations this afternoon and stop to visit one of the oldest wineries in Spain, still owned by the same family at Bodega Can Feixes. Continue to an inn, nestled in the vineyards by historic Poblet Monastery, an active religious community, with a bodega on its doorstep. Early evening visit to a nearby village with Roman remains and a medieval castle, for a tour and CAVA tasting before dinner in a Catalan farmhouse.
Overnight: Masia Cadet B L D
Day 4 PENEDÈS • PRIORAT
Following a morning tour of the monastery, travel across the mountains into the appellation of Priorat, once known only for communion wines but today a producer of the highest quality wines. This is an area of rugged beauty—steep terraced hillsides, almond trees in flower, remote medieval villages. Grape varietals include Garnacha, Merlot, Mazuelo and Syrah. Your tour begins in La Morera de Montsant at 2,400’, the Sacred Mountain with the Montsant Rock. After a visit to Bodega Pasanau Germans, enjoy a light lunch. The next stop is Scala Deí, the Stairway to Heaven, site of the oldest winery in the region. Visit the old cooperative and the nearby hermitage that affords beautiful views over the slate stone/llicorella terraces that produce the region’s unique wines. Visit a third winery, involved in the so-called wine revolution in Priorat, before continuing to your overnight in the heart of the countryside at a family hotel in the village of Porrera, and enjoy a Wine Seminar on the Wines of Priorat, and dinner at the inn.
Overnight: La Siuranella B L D
Day 5 PRIORAT
Travel cross country this morning to the lovely village of Miravet, on the river Ebre. Visit a Templar castle and medieval oil mill, the pottery museum and numerous ceramists. Cooking class and lunch in the countryside. After lunch, enjoy a final winery tour and tasting, before a free evening in the village. Overnight: as above B L
Day 6 PRIORAT • BARCELONA
Depart the rugged country of Priorat this morning for Barcelona. Stay in the heart of the old city. On an afternoon city tour, you’ll see some of the art and architecture that has made Barcelona such a destination for generations—works by the masters . Montaner and Gaudí. This evening starts in a cava/champage bar and continues to some of our favorite spots for a Tapas & Vinos Tasting Dinner.
Overnight: Hotel Catedral B D
Day 7 BARCELONA
Begin the day with a visit to the Boquería Market and lower Ramblas, on a food product tour. From there, you’ll wander into the Gothic Quarter with a stop at the Chocolate Museum. Explore on your own this afternoon. Farewell dinner with your guide in the newly gentrified Born district in a nueva cocina restaurant.
Overnight: as above B L
Day 8 BARCELONA
Day 9 BARCELONA • USA
Tour ends with breakfast. B
HIGHLIGHTS:
• Beach, country house & chic urban hotels
• Private hosted winery & vineyard visits
• Dramatic coastal & mountain villages
• Cooking Class & Wine Seminar
• 2 nights in the cultural hub of Barcelona
PRICE:
• On request
• No Scheduled departures
• Custom groups only
• 4 pax minimum
Contact us for smaller or larger groups. All prices subject to currency fluctions adjustment.
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