DAY 1 MADRID-VALLADOLID
Arrival to Madrid airport and direct transfer to Valladolid (235 kms, 2 hrs 45 minutes)
Dinner and overnight at hotel in Valladolid.
Introduction
RIBERA DE DUERO: The aristocracy of the Spanish wine (Castilla)
4 days / 3 nights – Valladolid/Salamanca A course of interpretation of wine to taste the more elegant wines of Spain
DAY 2 VALLADOLID
Breakfast and overnight at hotel.
Full day excursion, we will assist to an introductory course by an specialist enologist to know and appreciate the certificated wines of the area: Cigales, Rueda and Ribera de Duero, in the Centre of Study and Interpretation Vitivinicola Emina. There you will learn history of the wine cellar, explanation about elaboration, particularities, tasting with expert analysis, and lesson about ‘maridaje’ of wine-cuisine.Degustation lunch where we will taste and put into practice the wine course in the restaurant
(more details below). Afternoon, we will visit PEÑAFIEL with its superb castle and where we will visit the Museum of wine.
DAY 3 VALLADOLID-TORO-SALAMANCA
Breakfast at hotel. Departure to TORO (70 kms 1 hour) Important village in the middle age and with monumental downtown. They produce an excellent strong red wine, with an intense dark colour. We will visit a local winery, Bodega Palacio de Villachica.
SALAMANCA (100 Kms, 90 minutes) One of the oldest University in Europe, which was founded in XIIIth century. Excellent monumental downtown: Cathedral Old and New and the nice Plaza Mayor, (if it is possible, we suggest it, to include a guided city tour). Arrival to Salamanca. Dinner and overnight at hotel
DAY 4 SALAMANCA-MADRID
Breakfast at hotel and departure to Madrid airport (235 kms, 3 hours )
Notes:
The GASTRONOMIC EXPERIENCE. This kind of itinerary could become in a genial opportunity to taste local specialties in charming restaurants, some of them inside winery, singular buildings etc, with 2 dinner in restaurant instead of hotel or all meals in restaurant.
Other itinerary suggestion:
-This itinerary could be perfectly combined with La Rioja becoming a 7 days program.
*About Course of interpretation of wine
Matarromea is one of the most reputed wine cellar of Ribera de Duero with some of the most famous brands. In fact the wine served in the marriage of Spanish Prince was a Matarrromea, and in many important official national events. The course is an introduction to the technical testing of these wine: smelling, colours etc Technical tasting of white, rose, and red wine. And too how to combine with diferent type of food (=‘Maridaje’). All we will learnt, it will be applied in the degustation lunch, with different wine in each dish.