The best hotels to get into wine tourism

We are in the most fascinating time of year for wine lovers. Well, if it is an unknown world for you, you also have the opportunity to get to know the grape harvest up close, one of the most generous episodes of our culture, a ritual that is the heritage of generations and generations of winegrowers from all over the country, who put at your disposal available the experience of learning first-hand about the winemaking process. The impact of the pandemic has not prevented the wineries from continuing their production, and during the months of confinement the vineyards have silently continued their course, now they are splendorous, and waiting for the grape harvest to begin. Some of the measures that some producers have taken are the promotion of native varieties, and in the case of the DO Empordà they have opted for Garnacha and Carignan. A differential feature of this designation of origin is the white cariñena, a very unique variety that now wants to be strengthened.

So we go towards Alt Empordà, which offers spectacular vineyard landscapes. We will find multiple formulas for visits, wine tasting and accommodation that will allow us to get to know this tradition up close that has its origins in the farmers and winemakers of the area and that has now become a first-rate wine tourism activity, to the point of that many wineries, no matter how family-owned, have adapted to share with their visitors one of the most extraordinary times in the natural cycle of the wine sector. We invite you to discover some of the secrets hidden among the vineyards, to walk among the vines and get excited about the autumn colors that flood the landscapes, to see the wine-making process, to smell the wood of the barrels, and to meet some professionals who They will infect you with their passion.

We can start in Cantallops, at the Hotel Can Xiquet, where you can taste the pleasures of Albera, a proposal that consists of a tour to get to know the uniqueness of the Albera Natural Area through vineyards, wines and gastronomy. From the same hotel you will find the wine tourism proposal, which includes a night in a room with breakfast and dinner included for two people, with a visit to the Masía Serra Winery, located in the same municipality of Cantallops. Throughout its natural environment you will be able to observe how other plant species also grow around the vineyards, which participate in the aromatic configuration of the wines made with its grapes.

In the same region, in Maçanet de Cabrenys, we have the Hotel Els Caçadors de Maçanet, which is also an ideal starting point to get to know the Empordà Wine Route up close, an essential route to discover and get to know wineries, landscapes and wines from the DO Empordà. You can adapt the route and follow at your leisure the area with the most density of vineyards, and full of wine-making wineries that can be visited and with wine-tasting activities.

Its proximity to Girona means that establishments such as the Hotel Carlemany or the Hotel Peninsular are also an excellent bet to enjoy wine tourism in the Alt Empordà, and visit a winery with an innovative spirit such as La Vinyeta. There you can walk among the vines that begin the process of making its three main wines: Heus (white, black and rosé), Llavors (black) and Puntiapart (black). They are the three brands of the DO Empordà that symbolically explain the history of this winery, and where you can take a guided tour and wine tasting.

And now we go to Bages, where you cannot miss the proposal of the Ramon Park Hotel, in one of the lands with the most wine-growing tradition. Join us to discover the winemaking process in the DO Pla de Bages wineries, walking among its vineyards and tasting its best wines.

To learn more about the origin of their devotion to the world of grapes and wine production, we suggest a walk along the Ruta de las Tinas. When 150 years ago the Bages region was practically covered with vineyards, the remoteness, the difficulties, the risks and the additional cost of transporting the harvest to the hamlets led to the vats being built in the vineyards themselves. Head to the Flequer valley, where a simple circular route with few slopes will allow you to discover some spectacular buildings. Also throughout the region you will find different dry stone itineraries, which will make you discover an interesting set of old barracks and dry stone walls that bear witness to the occupation of the vineyard throughout the area.

Wherever it is, in Empordà or Bages, this autumn you have a unique opportunity to discover, with all the security that the current era requires, one of the best preserved and well-known ancient traditions, maintaining the balance between tradition and excellence. in wine production.

And think that every time you choose a wine from a winery that takes care of the landscape, you are deciding that precisely what you want is, apart from tasting an exquisite product, to preserve that landscape.

Fotos: Joan Diví, Xènia Gasull, Roger Lleixà, Archivo de imágenes PTCBG