Luxury Wine Tour La Rioja & Ribera del Duero

Luxury Wine Tour of Classic La Rioja & Ribera del Duero Overview:

Highlights:

View images of Madrid & Ribera del Duero

The Spanish wine regions of La Rioja and Ribera del Duero are two of the most famous and prestigious wine producing areas in the world. Wine Tours of these two regions can easily be combined with a fabulous city break to the buzzing Spanish capital of Madrid. This unique wine tasting journey takes in VIP private winery visits to such renowned estates as Pesquera and Marques de Riscal, not to mention a host of other smaller, interesting boutique wine producers such as Remirez de Ganuza. Apart from wine tasting, you'll enjoy delicious regional cuisine in charming, cozy restaurants, you'll sleep in luxurious inns and wine hotels and visit breathtaking monuments such as a 13th century Gothic Cathedral and an amazing Crusader Castle, perfectly shaped like a battleship and now home to a wine museum.

This Luxury Spanish Wine Tour begins in Madrid, Europe's best-kept secret. While Barcelona attracts a horde of tourists, Madrid is thankfully free of crowds. The Bourbon barrio, reminiscent of Paris architecturally, is gorgeous and you will enjoy a gastronomic walking tour of Madrid's most beautiful sights, sipping wine and munching on tapas on the way. After a few days of culture and shopping in Madrid, you'll begin your wine journey through the castle-studded region of Castile and the lovely vine-covered region of La Rioja. Highlights include: sipping wine in 15th century caves, sleeping in a castle, vineyard walks, private visits with winemakers (depending on time of year, you can participate in the harvest, pruning or other vineyard tasks) and above all the memorable meals of slow cooked roast lamb and peppers paired with magical wines, in delightful wine country restaurants. If you love Spanish wine and want a unique luxury holiday, this is it!

Arrive Madrid, transfer by luxury Mercedes/ coach from the airport to your centrally located hotel, a converted palace dating back to the 1800's.

Free afternoon in Madrid to catch up on your sleep, go shopping, have lunch, etc.

Early evening Walking Tour of Madrid's historic Bourbon and Hapsburg quarters, to take in: The Royal Palace, Opera House, The Puerta del Sol, the Gran Via, Cibeles and Correos, Neptune's fountain, etc.

The gastronomic walking tour will include: Champagne aperitifs, and various wines and tapas dishes such as smoked cod, spicy peppers, Bellota (acorn fed) ham, Spanish omelette, octopus, calamari and even paella. Wines by the glass from Rueda, Toro, Penedes and Jerez.

Late evening on your own to enjoy Madrid's nightlife, flamenco shows, etc.

Overnight:

4* Palatial Hotel, Downtown Madrid

Meals Included in Price:

Champagne Aperitif (Cava), Tapas Dinner (with wine and Spanish digestives)

Transfers:

Madrid Airport- Downtown Madrid

Full Breakfast at Hotel in pretty room overlooking Opera House

Free day on your own to enjoy the Prado Museum (classic painters such as Velazquez, Goya, El Greco Tiziano, Zurbaran, Murrillo, etc) and the Reina Sofia (Modern painters such as Picasso, Dali and Miro), etc

In Madrid, there is also excellent shopping for top quality shoes, clothes, leather, perfumes, artisan ceramics and glassware, olive wood, and the best gourmet products Spain has to offer (virgin Olive Oils, wine vinegars, Saffron, smoked paprikas, etc)

Tonight, dinner will be a night to remember: a Gourmet six course feat with wine matching at new avante garde restaurant in Madrid's charming Malasaña barrio.

Overnight:

4* Palatial Hotel, Downtown Madrid

Meals Included in Price:

Full breakfast, Gourmet dinner with wine

Transfers:

None

Full breakfast Full Breakfast at Hotel in pretty room overlooking Opera House

From Madrid, we will make our way north to the luscious red wine region of Ribera del Duero, where we will spend two wonderful nights at a hotel amid the vines, and take in various VIP winery visits to such famed cellars as Ismael Arroyo (with its 15th century wine caves), La Pesquera, Condado de Haza and Alion (owned by Vega Sicilia).

First Winery visit, followed by typical Castilian lunch at a beautiful restaurant overlooking the Duero river, Second VIP winery visit and afternoon to relax at our 5* Wine Hotel (where we will have the option to enjoy vineyard walks before dinner).

Dinner on your own at the highly esteemed restaurant at the wine hotel, Ribera del Duero.

Overnight:

5* Wine Hotel, Ribera del Duero

Meals Included in Price:

Full breakfast, Lunch with wine

Transfers:

Madrid- Sotillo- Roa- Quintanilla del Onesimo

Full Breakfast at Wine Hotel

From Ribera del Duero - we'll visit a famed cellar such as Abadia Retuerta for a private tour and wine tasting. Before lunch, we'll visit the Ribera del Duero wine museum, located in a stunning castle in the vast plains of Castilla y Leon. The sommelier will lead us through a tasting of various local wines and we'll have free time to enjoy the museum and the views form the castle's ramparts.

Lunch will be waiting for us in a medieval village below, in a typical "Asador", with a lunch to include roast lamb, slow cooked in ancient wood-fired ovens, unforgettable!

The late afternoon will include an excursion to a pretty village nearby and we can even visit an excavated site of Roman mosaics.

Dinner on your own at the hotel or taxi to a tavern in the village

Overnight:

5* Wine Hotel, Ribera del Duero

Meals Included in Price:

Full breakfast, Lunch with wine

Transfers:

Quintanilla de Onesimo- Sardon del Duero- Penafiel

Full buffet breakfast in the castle

From Ribera del Duero, we'll head northeast to the hillier, lovely wine region of La Rioja. We will enjoy a first visit to a historic winery, to see where Rioja's quality wine history began. This cellar dates back to the 1860's, and is French in style (the French lent much influence to Rioja during this period). A private visit followed by wine tasting and tapas (light lunch) will be on today's menu.

After the visit, we'll carry on to the medieval hill top wine town of Laguardia. Check in to our wine hotel, with views of the vines. Afternoon on your own to relax and discover this pretty village, full of wine shops, mansions, and gorgeous views of the Cantabrian mountains and vineyard covered valley.

Dinner will be exceptionally atmospheric gourmet dinner in an art nouveau castle, a gourmet Riojano feast. Overnight in the castle!

Overnight:

Castle, La Rioja

Meals Included in Price:

Full breakfast, Lunch with wine

Transfers:

Laguardia- El Ciego- Logrono- Fuenmayor

Full buffet breakfast in the castle

Today is a major wine tasting day, with VIP visits to 2 famous estates- one historic, one modern

The first special winery visit is to Marques de Murrieta (beautiful, historic estate complete with castle). VIP winery visit and tasting of all wines on the market, along with special old vintages. The next winery visit is planned for the lovely modern cellars of Finca Valpiedra.

Gourmet lunch in pretty, historic restaurant nearby in Rioja wine country, with vino, of course!

Late afternoon and dinner on your own in the atmospheric medieval village, where a multitude of gourmet restaurants abound.

Extras: Wine Gift at each winery, personalized tasting sheets

Overnight:

Castle, La Rioja

Meals Included in Price:

Full breakfast, Gourmet Lunch with wine

Transfers:

La Rioja- various villages

Full buffet breakfast in the castle

The futuristic winery of Ysios, designed by Santiago Calatrava is the first visit today. The winery is tiny and the visit will be short, but you will marvel at his architectural genius and enjoy the views looking back up at Laguardia across the vines.

From La Rioja, our wine journey continues on to Navarre, the beautiful aristocratic region just east of la Rioja, which borders France. We will visit the pretty village of Olite, a town famous for its fairy tale castle and its wine. We'll climb the ramparts and turrets of the castle, enjoy an aperitif in a 14th century converted monastery and then sit down to a gourmet feast paired with excellent wines from Navarra. Reservation only, lunch not included in price

The drive back to La Rioja will take in ancient pilgrim roads, and we might even see some pilgrims with their scallop-shelled staffs, making their way for Santiago de Compostela on the route known as "Saint James Way".

Our farewell dinner tonight will be marvellous, in a 16th century nobleman's mansion, now a gourmet restaurant.

Overnight:

Castle, La Rioja

Meals Included in Price:

Full breakfast, Dinner with wine

Transfers:

La Rioja- Navarre- La Rioja

Full buffet breakfast in the castle

Today, we make our way back to Madrid, but first we'll stop in historic Burgos, with its 13th century Gothic Cathedral, for lunch. Lunch will be a rustic affair in a beautiful old restaurant with wood burning ovens.

We'll visit the lovely "Casco Viejo" of this ancient village, the old stomping grounds for the Knights of the Templar, before driving south to Madrid.If time permits, we'll enjoy a coffee in the historic village of Lerma, near Burgos.

Our wine journey ends in Madrid and we will drop you off at the airport or your next port of call.

End of services

Meals Included in Price:

Full breakfast, Lunch with wine

Transfers:

La Rioja - Burgos - Madrid

What's Included:

What's Not Included:

Prices:

This is a SAMPLE TOUR ITINERARY. Please note that our chauffeured luxury tours have the following starting prices:

The best day of the week to arrive in Madrid for this tour, is Saturday (Saturday to Saturday) as this scheduled permits the winery visits as described in the itinerary.

More Information on this Luxury Wine Tour of Classic La Rioja & Ribera del Duero:

If you are interested in this Luxury Spanish Wine Tour, contact us today for pricing (which depends on group size and specific requirements). All tours are available year round upon request for your private group of minimum 2 people. If you would like us to customize a luxury gourmet tour for you, contact us with your requirements, and we can send you a free itinerary and quote with no obligations. We organize cooking packages and wine tours from 1 day, to weekends to longer food and wine discoveries throughout Spain, Portugal & Italy.

Email us at: info@cellartours.com