WTN: If at first you don't succeed....

[Jenise]

Practicing for our trip to Spain:

2004 Ontañón Rioja Arteso Tempranillo Blend, Tempranillo
Modern with no character. Dumped it on the azaleas and then opened:

2004 Fernando Remírez de Ganuza Rioja Tempranillo Blend, Tempranillo
Earthy and rustic with plummy black fruits and some iron-rich minerality. Very dry; doesn't show well without food. Decanting recommended.

I assume you are going to Rioja, and if so I'd highly recommend having dinner at least once in Logrono - there's a street full of restaurants serving tapas and pouring wine. it's a fun and tasty experience. We stayed in in Logrono to be able to walk to this area, but Haro is the town where many top wineries are. I assume you've booked a tour at Lopez de Heredia, it's well worth a visit. Muga is right beside it and doesn't require an appointment.

The scenery around the Rioja area is very pretty, and there are some small towns that are charming, if sometimes overrun by tourists (but you'll be out of tourist season probably). Have a great time!

[Jenise]

John, thanks for the recco on Logrono. I didn't know about it, to be honest. We've got two nights booked in Haro, one night inside an ancient building 8 room hotel-restaurant within the midievel walled old town Laguardia, and have two nights open for "whatever else" before we're due in Barcelona. I'll def add Logrono to our list. Yes, re LdH.

Calla del Laurel is the name of the street and nearby Calle de San Juan also has mixture of pincho/tapas restaurants, often with each place having a speciality or even only serving one dish; there are also 'normal' restaurants if you want to go that route. But wandering around Calla del Laurel around 9 pm and checking out 5-7 different places, as well of course as people watching, is quite fun. It's in the old town of Logrono.

Laguardia is definitely a nice little place to stay, and there are some good producers between Haro and Laguardia to stop at along the way...

Here one little article about Logrono that might be helpful - https://www.cntraveller.com/gallery/the-rioja-region-of-logrono.