Hey guys - looking for recommendations on things to do of the alcoholic variety while in Spain in a couple of weeks. We will be in San Sebastian for a couple days, followed by Girona and Barcelona. I’ll likely rent a car for a majority of the trip so detours between those places would be welcome. Additionally, I do not have much experience with Spanish wine (Cava, sherry or otherwise) and would love suggestions on what to seek out.
Hey Tony, take a look in the travel forum and here
Albariño. Great wine at a great price. Was in Spain this past summer drank a lot of it. Of course there were others but this was always easy.
In San Sebastian it was more often Pinxtos and Rosé by the glass
George
Heresy!!!
Txakoli, real men drink Txakoli! The white wine of San Sebastian.
Broaden the search to Spain and lots more nuggets.
Looks like seeking out some Sidra is a worthwhile exercise as well.
Like…Andalucía!!!
I don’t have enough time for major wine touring but would like to visit a winery or 2 within an or so from Barcelona during one of the days I am there. What are the best bets as far as quality and hospitality. Torres?? Any others?? I have a group of 6.
What would be the best bet for a wine bar similar to Winebar do Castello in Lisbon where we could do a well thought tasting tour of the region in an afternoon?
Although I have not been to these, these come highly recommended by a chef in the LA area who is from Basque country and knows the owners first hand of his recs:
1]Asador Etxebarri in Atxondo which is 40 minutes from Bilbao and
2] Arzak
A friend who represents R. Lopez de Heredia, one of the top wine producers in Rioja, also supports there choices as most go types.
A third choice is Iturrioz which again, I`ve heard is superb.
Went to Arzak for lunch over the summer. It was excellent with amazing views. Wine list was pretty good and relatively reasonable for a 3*** IIRC.
B.
A great winery to visit, within 45 minutes of Barcelona is Alta Alella (http://www.altaalella.wine/en/). The tour is really good, and the scenery (vineyard are grown like an amphitheatre overlooking the mediterranean sea in the distance) is very beautiful. They make a large range of wines from Cava, to still whites and reds, to a really interesting sweet red. They do some great small batch experimental wines, and are moving towards all organic.
In San Sebastian this place gets really high acclaim: http://www.sansebastianfood.com
A nice wine store / tasting bar in Barcelona that I’ve been to is Bodega Maestrazgo (Bodega Maestrazgo). It’s a great place to try some high quality Spanish wines by the glass. The owner is a super nice guy and always has some great vintages available as he uses Coravin.
If you’re interested in a private wine tasting session from a very passionate and knowledgeable sommelier check out Wine Tasting in Barcelona | Wine Cuentista.. He runs them out of the above-mentioned wine store.
Hopping on this thread to express my thanks to all of you who have contributed to this and other threads relating to travel in Spain. We recently returned from a 10 day trip to Barcelona, San Sebastian, Rioja and Madrid, and many of our plans were based on comments on this board. Highlights for us: dinner at Can Roca (it more than lives up to its reputation); visiting wineries in Priorat with Miquel Hudin; staying at the Maria Cristina (thanks Todd & Co.); dinner at Mugaritz (a “highlight” in terms of the experience, if not always the individual dishes 
); dinner at Arzak (with our order taken by the charming Elena Arzak herself); staying/dining/visiting the winery at Marques de Riscal; and in general drinking delicious wines from Spain and elsewhere (my somm friend has the list of over 50 wines that we sampled and consumed).
I always make sure to credit WineBerserkers for anything I know about traveling abroad. Keep up the great work!!
I forgot to add one more really fun restaurant in Barcelona - Spoonik. Run by two chefs from Colombia and Cancun respectively, it doesn’t seem to have the same reputation with the locals as other top caliber places, but these guys put out wonderful food and put on a show. They vary the music, lighting and the appearance of your tabletop (which doubles as a screen) with each course. While this may seem gauche, it is tremendous fun - and most important, the food is delicious. Its a fairly small place, a little off the beaten path in the city, but worth seeking out.
What wineries in Priorat did you visit?
One was Bodegas Mas Alta - I need to check on the other 2.
Here are the 3:
Scala Dei
Bodegas mas Alta
Sangenic I Vaque
We enjoyed the tastings and tours at all of them (they differed in the amount of the working winery that we taken through).
Thanks, Phil. Can you share any specifics about your impressions of the wines? I’m intrigued by white Priorat and I know Mas Alta makes one, did you try that one or any others?
I hope to return to Priorat but future trips will not be planned for me, unfortunately!