The afternoon before, we’re at the hotel in Vallalodid, post-ADWATC (“a disappointing walk around the city,”) and pre-dinner. And I’m panicking. I felt like I needed one thing to make the next day better, and I figured out it was a wine tour.
Somehow I just learned on the internet that the heart of Ribera del Duero (RdD) wine country was just 10-30 miles to the east of Vallalodid. I did some half-a$$ searching on line, and found the website for Finca Villacreces, which produces an affordable, excellent RdD. The TripAdvisor ratings for the wine tour/tasting amounted to 279 excellents (five stars), 36 very goods (four stars), 7 averages (three stars), one poor (two stars), and one terrible (one star). That’s a pretty good ratio of four/five stars to one/two stars (315 to 2).
I’ve probably bought two-three cases of Finca Villacreces over the last four years, so I quickly sent an email asking if there was availability on the 1pm tour the next day. It was after business hours, so I just had to wait overnight.
The next morning (Friday, May 5) an email popped up from Jaime Miranda Martin at Finca Villacreces that they had two more availabilities out of twelve people for the 1pm. So I jumped on it. We drove from Vallalodid south to Castillo La Mota, toured that quickly, and then headed northeast back up to Villacreces.
It took us right through heart of Ribera del Duero, and Villacreces’ main vineyard abuts the Duero River itself. We pulled into the winery driveway, down a long, curvy dirt road/slightly paved road through an enchanting 200 year old pine forest before arriving at the winery. Sitting at 2300 meters above sea level, the winery is surprising flat. I suppose I was expecting rolling hills, but that’s not the case.
First, a word about RdD. My favorite Spanish wine region is Priorat (in Catalunya), but Ribera del Duero is a close second, often tying for first place with Priorat, especially when we are quaffing a RdD. Third place is the more famous Rioja, with Toro in fourth place. In Spain, the best wine to drink is the wine of the region you are in/the wine of the region where the food you are eating is from.
When friends come over and I open Spanish red, it’s invariably Priorat or Ribera del Duero, as I assume everyone know Rioja and I’ve found few Americans know the prior two wine regions.
Anyhow, after checking in with Jaime we had to wait a bit. The next couple who showed up were much younger, and they live in Dupont Circle. We didn’t get much chance to talk, because Jaime started the tour even though the group of eight Canadians were late.
We’ve been to wineries on five of the seven continents. The only two missing are South America (been there, but not a winery though) and Antarctica (we’ve been there, but never found a winery). Jaime’s tour and tasting was the best we’ve ever done. We’ve been to more beautiful settings for wineries, and we’ve done some really neat ones, including a tour from Barcelona of a Priorat vineyard and garage wineries that was fantastic. We’ve gone to many wineries in jaw-dropping areas, including our beloved Nelson County, Virginia. (Wines from Virginia have improved significantly over the years, but the settings of the wineries/views from the wineries have remained fantastic.)
But Jaime gave the most interesting tour and tasting we’ve ever been on. He really broke down the science and details behind growing grapes, wine making, and wine tasting. Oh, to quote “Rocket Man:” “And all this science I don’t understand. . .” I mean I understand a bunch about wine, but I’ve forgotten more than I remember..
(Editor’s Note: “A bunch about wine” – like how to make grape puns. Writer: It’s just my job five days a week.)
Anyhow, when we get back to the States, I won’t be able to remember all of the details Jaime told us, but bits and pieces will come back to me at times.
The tasting was quite nice. Two people were seated at each of six small high tops. There were platters with some cheese, some chorizo, and some bread. We tasted two wines, the Villacreces (86% Tempranillo, 10% Cab Sauv, and 4% Merlot) and their Pruno (95% Temp, 5% Cab Sauv).
In 2010, Robert Parker called Villacreces the best wine under $30 in Spain. In 2016, he called Pruno the best Spanish wine in history for under $20.
Jaime walked us through the elements of wine tasting. I’ve similar wine tastings, but it has never been so well and so clearly explained. I was really blown away about just how good a job he did. Needless to say, we bought a couple of bottles – one Villacreces and one Pruno for later in the trip. And by later in the trip, the bottles were empty before we left our next stop, Segovia.
We then stopped for lunch at Taller Arzuaga, a large, beautiful country estate hotel/spa across from beautiful vineyards. It was a nice place to relax and reflect on the wine tour. Later on the trip, in Cuenca, we bought and had a bottle from Arzauga winery. Not surprisingly, it was pretty good. And then off to Segovia.
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