My Rioja vineyards tour begins with the Campo Viejo Winery, a few km from the city of Logroño. Their new winery has become the first unique production facility of its kind, based on the principles of sustainable development. With a production of over 30 million bottles a year, exporting to 70 countries of the world Campo Viejo is the largest winery I visited in Rioja.
This is a trip I have been organizing for some time and counting with one of the most important wineries makes it even more interesting. Do you want to know how to organize the Rioja vineyards tour? Read here!
GENERAL INFORMATION
To reach Campo Viejo Winery you need to rent a car, just 5 km away from the city of Logroño. At the train station, you can rent a car and It takes less than 15 minutes. You can also take a taxi from the city, there are a lot of people that do it.
They organize a lot of activities, not just to taste its wine, but for example, painting bottles or private tours and pairing with local products. Guided tours of the winery can be booked for 10:30h, 13:00h and 15:00h on weekdays, and 10:30h and 13:00h on weekends. Online reservation service, most of the activities are in Spanish and English. Tours start from 12€ to 20€, many of it last 2 hours.
THE CELLAR
The Campo Viejo winery opened in 2001 with a design that is a harmonious balance between oenology, architecture, and sustainability. Built partly underground, this winery was designed respecting the environment and following sustainable criteria. They collaborate with Acciónatura that is one of the first Spanish Ong dedicated exclusively to the protection, improvement of natural ecosystems.
The grape variety most famous of the region is Tempranillo, however, they use Garnacha, Graciano y Mazuelo too. The white wine in Rioja begin to enjoy recognition, Campo Viejo has launched a new white wine based on Viura Tempranillo (really good).
WINE TASTING
I made the tour with a tasting of the 3 best varietals paired with an appetizer at the bar (12€). The guide will explain to you all the details about the production, how the made it, and details of the underground winery.
The winery is modern and really beautiful, the tour is interesting and quite short. At the end of the tour in the wine bar, they organize the tasting with some local product. We tasted 3 wines: white wine, Crianza (minimum of 24 months of age) and Reserva (minimum of 36 months).
AROUND CAMPO VIEJO
Logroño is a good choice for a day trip. It has historically been a place of passage and border, the most famous street, the way of Santiago de Compostela. The streets of the city are full of restaurants that offer typical cuisine with good price and high quality. Calle Laurel is the most famous in the city, for tapas and Pinchos, don’t miss it.
