Thanksgiving in Spain's Wine Country

For this year's Thanksgiving holiday, Kate and I jumped on a Wizz Air flight from Sofia to Barcelona, rented a car, and hit the road to tour some of Spain's most heralded wine growing regions - the Priorat and the Penedes, two areas located within a two-hour drive from Barcelona. 

From Thursday through Sunday, we drove around in our SMART car and learned a bit more about the drink we love - wine.  From the vine to our glass, here is a bit of our trip in pictures and words: 

450 total kilometers in this little guy - our beloved SMART car. 

Grapes hanging in the dying sun of Gratallops in the Priorat. 

The reds staining the oak barrels at Albet i Noya 

Rows after row of red wine spending some time in bottles. 

Bottles waiting to be labeled, and shipped out...

For us to enjoy at an amazing dinner. 

Not much is better than this...from the vine to this glass and into my mouth.  

On Thursday morning we left Barcelona for a two-hour drive southwest along the Spanish coast and a bit inland to our first wine stop in the Priorat wine region, an area characterized by a fairly dramatic landscape, with terraced vineyards rising up in the valleys and through the hills as far as the eye can see.  We were graced with wonderful sunshine and, since it is November and low, low season for the area, we found ourselves to be some of the only tourists around.  Our hotel was located in a small, medieval hilltown called Gratallops, with a population of about 180, but within striking distance of some of the country's best vineyards.

Vineyards enveloped the small hill town.

Gratallops, the beautiful pueblo, at sundown. 

A close up of the oldest part of the church tower and buildings. 

A little farther back. 

There were plenty of places in town that bottled wine. 

And some nice places to sit (after you've had a few glasses)

Before heading out to drink more wine. 

I asked for the barrel, but only got a glass. 

Our Thanksgiving lunch was a classic served up in one of the most famous restaurants in the area - Irreductibles.

 As we were the only ones in the restaurant for a Thursday lunch, the chef created a meat-free, 5-course custom meal for our enjoyment (although at first a hint of panic could be seen in his eyes, the chef seemed to relish the challenge of creating a vegetarian lunch).  Our lunch featured the following:

- Slightly toasted bread with some olive oil from the Clos Mogador vineyard. 
-a couple of spoonfulls of tomato soup, bread crumbs, with olive oil and garlic.
- a poached egg on a bed of veggies, including asparagus
- tagliatelle with a mushroom cream sauce and toasted parmesan
- 5 different kinds of cheese (3 local, 2 french) w/ a specific jam, honey, or spread paired with the cheese.
- a raspberry puree, on top of celery ice cream, with yogurt, and three ravioli filled with each of the three
- a cafe (for me) 
- We washed it all down with a bottle of Les Terrasses 2008 (an Alvaro Palacios wine)

Stuffed, as appropriate for a Thanksgiving afternoon, we walked away from Irreductibles with a bottle of the Clos Mogador olive oil, the Las Terrassees bottle of red wine, and a bottle of Les Cousins, another Priorat favorite (see Our Wine Trip Loot photo).  

After the massive lunch, I set off into the vineyards surrounding Grattalops. 

Unfortunately they don't have a visitor center, so I just poked around their vineyards. 

"It's so pretty, pretty, pretty." 

The harvesting of the grapes just ended a couple of months ago. 

This is what it looked liked for miles and miles. 

As the sun sets...

Although chilly, the sky looked so amazing. 

And with the sun going down, a bit of rest, it was almost time to head out for dinner. 

Although you might be thinking that there was no way Kate and I would be able to recover from our lunch, we were motivated by a reservation I had already made a few weeks ago at one of the other most celebrated restaurants in the area.  We jumped in the SMART, drove 7 kilometers from Gratallops to Falset, and ate at this marvelous spot:

As we sat down, Kate and I discussed perhaps splitting something small, not eating too much, and just enjoying the end to a great, non-traditional Thanksgiving.  This, of course, was before the chef/ownder of the restaurant, emerged from the kitchen.  He had remembered my request for a vegetarian paella/rice dish, but was coming out to suggest some appetizers he had in mind.  Although it is often risky, I don't believe in telling any professional chef not to serve us up something he thinks will be delightful.  Plus, we were about to have our second custom designed meal of our lives, and both came on the same day! 

Kate's glass of Lo Givot (the bottle in the first series) is as big as her head. 

Okay, here's the second 5 course listing:

- freshly pressed olive oil (tinted green, almost neon) from the region w/ bread
- Potato soup 
- Grilled wild forest mushrooms
- Chickpeas with grilled mushrooms
- Vegetarian Arroz (a paella/risotto like) main dish 
- Rosemary Ice Cream
- A Hazlenut Tart and an Apple Tart 
- A bottle of Lo Givot

Two massive meals.  Two full stomach.  Two content tourists.  Happy, happy Thanksgiving. 


The rest of our trip was spent closet to Barcelona, in the Penedes region.  This area is famous for its Cava, a sparkling wine, but is also growing in its reputation for reds and whites.

Our first visit was to Codorniu, the largest maker of Cava in the world:

The front gate to the winery. 

We toured their massive, massive cellars. 

Bottles of Cava. 

The process for making Cava is quite complicated. 

And dangerous - pressure can cause Cava explosions. 

The best part of any tour - the tasting.

Our other visit in the Penedes wine region was to Albet i Noya - one of only a handful of organic vineyards in Spain, and one of the most celebrated in the world.  While the tour of Codorniu was a massive affair, this winery experience was of a much more intimate nature. 

More to follow...