Rioja Around the Clock

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Haro is considered by some sources to be the wine capital of the Rioja wine area so I pick this as our next stop and a place for a day of wine tasting. I hadn't realised, but Haro is also famous for having a wine "battle" where everyone drenches themselves in wine. We've just missed this by only a week.

The Rioja is also a longish drive from Barcelona so we have full day in the car heading westwards up the Ebro valley. Driving in Spain is relatively easy as most of the roads are good and surprisingly quiet. I picked up the tip of traveling mainly on “A” roads signed as AutoVia which are free and almost as good as the toll motorways.

We are used to Australian style wine tasting and we know that in most other countries it is a little different and based on my research I’m not too sure how easy it will be to turn up and taste wine. However, despite the heavy promotion for wine tours (which do need to be booked), if you just want to sample wines and are prepared to pay, a lot of wineries have wine-bars where you can do just that.

Haro is a particularly good place to do this as there are 6 (or so) bodegas in an area near the station, walking distance from the town all offering tastings for a very reasonable price.

In the morning we tour Haro old town as it has some interesting sights and then walk down to the bodegas area. We visit 3 of the bodegas – CVNE, La Rioja Alta and Bilbainas. Three is just right for a good afternoon and we can walk back to our apartment and still enjoy the evening.

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Photos

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Haro main square

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Haro old town

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Rioja wineries

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1st tasting of the day

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Our 3rd bodega tasting

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It's all about the wine in Haro