Frank Gehry's titanium-ribboned sculpture rises dramatically above Rioja's vineyards, its 43 rooms shaped by the building's swooping contours with canted windows framing views through steel lattice. The Caudalie vinotherapy spa channels the surrounding terroir into treatments, while the rooftop restaurant delivers two-Michelin-star molecular gastronomy. Below, tours of the original 1858 bodega ground the avant-garde spectacle in winemaking tradition.
Ariane de Rothschild converted this centuries-old palace into a nine-room retreat where each suite bears the name of a grape varietal and walls display an eclectic collection of global objets d'art. The Basque fine-dining restaurant anchors evenings, while days unfold at the family's Macán winery for Tempranillo tastings or drifting above the vineyards by hot air balloon. Wine lovers with a taste for intimacy will find their match.
Chef Edorta Lamo's one-starred table occupies a remote village in Montaña Alavesa, where three distinct dining spaces—including a rustic kuadra serving traditional putxero stew—frame an intensely local menu. The gastronomic experience opens with an 'ongietorri lunch' of house-cured charcuterie and tiny fried birds, before progressing through partridge, pigeon, deer, and foraged mountain lichens. A Green Star signals the kitchen's commitment to its rugged terroir.
Beneath Frank Gehry's undulating titanium canopy—pink, gold, and silver waves echoing the winery's iconic bottles—chef Francis Paniego orchestrates a contemporary menu deeply anchored in Rioja and Álava terroir. His two tasting menus, Torrea and Chirel, open with Basque-inspired bites including croquettes made from his mother's recipe, before exploring seasonal ingredients with inventive precision. A theatrical setting for serious gastronomy.
Portuguese-born chef Bruno Coelho helms this dining room within an 18th-century palace turned boutique hotel, where artworks from Baroness Ariane de Rothschild's collection line the walls. His seasonally driven menus draw on Galician and French influences, the 'Edmond' tasting menu offering two distinct wine pairings that showcase Rioja Alavesa's exceptional terroir alongside creative, locally rooted cooking.
Floor-to-ceiling windows frame endless vineyard rows and distant sierra peaks at this winery restaurant, where chef Cristian Solana presents two distinct tasting menus. The traditional Calados del Puntido offers regional comfort, while the more ambitious El Puntido menu ventures into creative territory—his grilled peas with scallop noodles and ham broth exemplifies the kitchen's refined approach to local ingredients.
Beneath the ancient ramparts of San Vicente de la Sonsierra, Casa Toni delivers a striking counterpoint: a sleek dining room dressed in red and white, its décor nodding to the surrounding vineyards. The Bib Gourmand kitchen mines deep Rioja traditions—notably patorrillo a la riojana, slow-braised lamb tripe and trotters—while folding in contemporary techniques. A gastronomic menu rewards those seeking regional authenticity with modern polish.
A husband-and-wife operation in the village of Páganos, Héctor Oribe builds its contemporary cooking around a single seasonal tasting menu. The kitchen excels at rooted Basque flavors given modern precision: black pudding canutillos with red alubia cream, cod tacos lifted by chickpea hummus and spinach pil-pil, and a fresh Idiazábal cheesecake with quince that closes the meal with regional elegance.
Laguardia offers the most accommodation options within its medieval walls, with restaurants and wine bars steps from your door. Elciego draws visitors to its landmark hotel and nearby wineries. Labastida provides a quieter alternative with excellent access to hiking trails in the Sierra de Cantabria.
September and October bring harvest festivities and golden vineyard colors. Spring offers mild temperatures and the prized white asparagus season. Summer can be hot, though evenings cool quickly at this elevation. Winter remains mild by northern Spanish standards, and wineries welcome visitors year-round.
Most contemporary wineries require advance booking for tours and tastings — some fill weeks ahead during peak season. Several offer on-site restaurants where reservations secure access to the buildings. A car proves essential for reaching wineries scattered across the region, though guided tours operate from Laguardia and nearby Logroño.
This compact wine region stretches along the southern slopes of the Sierra de Cantabria, where medieval villages like Laguardia, Elciego, and Labastida cling to hilltops above endless rows of Tempranillo vines. The landscape shifts between fortified town walls dating to the 10th century and striking contemporary architecture — Frank Gehry's titanium-clad hotel in Elciego announced the region's ambitions two decades ago, and subsequent winery projects by Zaha Hadid and Santiago Calatrava have followed.
Dining here revolves around the region's produce: lamb roasted over vine cuttings, wild mushrooms from the sierra, and the white asparagus that appears each spring. Village restaurants serve multi-course tasting menus in medieval cellars, while winery dining rooms offer vineyard views with every course. The local txakoli bars in Laguardia's stone streets pour the region's lesser-known white alongside pintxos, and harvest season brings grape-stomping festivals that have run for centuries.
