The Simpson's Spanish Raid

[Barriesimpson]

Peñafiel, the heart of the worlds best wine production.

 

[Barriesimpson]

We had lunch in an Asador típico from around here. Lechazo asado, ensalada and some chips. A nice bottle of local wine and all is good.

 

[Barriesimpson]

Tonight we are staying in a car park right next to the Protos Bodegas, below the castle that we will visit tomorrow. There is nobody else here for now.

 

[Peavy]

We just crossed paths, we didn't stop in Peñafiel this time, and went further.
Lechazo is serious stuff

 

[Barriesimpson]

We just crossed paths, we didn't stop in Peñafiel this time, and went further.
Lechazo is serious stuff

Yes Lechazo is serious stuff. I believe it is illegal in England much like cochinillo, is that correct?

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[Orion]

Yes Lechazo is serious stuff. I believe it is illegal in England much like cochinillo, is that correct?

I’ve managed to obtain both suckling lamb and pig direct from a local (rural) source in the past, and cooked the former al horno with onions and spuds in a cazuela over charcoal in the Kamado, but I’ve never seen it for sale anywhere over here.

 

[Barriesimpson]

Day two in Peñafiel, the castle doesn't open on Mondays neither does the Protos Bodega, so we found a launderette to do the washing instead. Took some photos of the surrounding land, there is an awful lot of wine growing out there, fantastic.

 

[Barriesimpson]

Then it was lunch time so we went to the old part of town and found a nice bar. An excellent meal for €49.

 

[Barriesimpson]

Ok, third and final day (for this trip) in Peñafiel. A visit to the Bodegas Protos, pioneers of the 'Ribera del Duero' wine region. They have been making wine since 1927, I remember when they started . A nice guided tour of the bodega and a tasting of 3 of their products.

 

[Barriesimpson]

Lunch was a simple 'menú del día' but we ordered a bottle of wine too, so €45 all in.

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[Just smiffy]

Ok, third and final day (for this trip) in Peñafiel. A visit to the Bodegas Protos, pioneers of the 'Ribera del Duero' wine region. They have been making wine since 1927, I remember when they started . A nice guided tour of the bodega and a tasting of 3 of their products.
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Is it a new winery..? There all new barrels…..

 

[Mr porky]

Ok, third and final day (for this trip) in Peñafiel. A visit to the Bodegas Protos, pioneers of the 'Ribera del Duero' wine region. They have been making wine since 1927, I remember when they started . A nice guided tour of the bodega and a tasting of 3 of their products.
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Protos is one of my go to wines. Very nice.

 

[Barriesimpson]

Is it a new winery..? There all new barrels…..

The barrels are renewed every year to assure the flavour apportioned to each harvest is the same.

 

[CAB96]

It's a bit like sherry and bourbon.

They take the roughness and harsh flavour out of the new barrels, so that the Scots can use them for their amber nectar

 

[Peavy]

Great wine Protos

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[Outdoors Dad]

A great thread mate but I have food and sun envy

 

[Mullet Man]

I think you won't.

A shellfish pedant writes...You are incorrect,most mussels in the UK come from Scottish production,with smaller quantities from Wales,Ireland,Cornwall and Devon. Some are imported from Spain. The UK production is of the smaller blue shelled mussel,Mytilus Edulis. The one's grown in Galicia are Mytilus Galloprovincialis,which is a much bigger beastie. I have never found these for sale fresh in the UK but wish I had.
Last spring in Portugal I was regularly buying huge Galician mussels at Continente in Silves, at half what they cost in Spain. Go figure. They weren't on a special either,I asked the guy on the fish counter,he was from Yorkshire.

 

[Barriesimpson]

A shellfish pedant writes...You are incorrect,most mussels in the UK come from Scottish production,with smaller quantities from Wales,Ireland,Cornwall and Devon. Some are imported from Spain. The UK production is of the smaller blue shelled mussel,Mytilus Edulis. The one's grown in Galicia are Mytilus Galloprovincialis,which is a much bigger beastie. I have never found these for sale fresh in the UK but wish I had.
Last spring in Portugal I was regularly buying huge Galician mussels at Continente in Silves, at half what they cost in Spain. Go figure. They weren't on a special either,I asked the guy on the fish counter,he was from Yorkshire.

Ok, I'll concede the point my friend

 

[Barriesimpson]

Soria today, still on the Duero River and a very nice place. We found a services point on P4N and did the necessary, then went on to a parking site next to the river. About 10 minutes walking distance to the centre of the city.

 

[Barriesimpson]

Van lunch was Angus beef burgers and a revuelto de setas mezcladas. Lovely

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[Barriesimpson]

Zaragoza, a lovely city but it's absolutely pi**ing down and has been since we left Soria. So the only thing to do is prepare van food, a bottle of plonk and settle down to MHF. Just before we left Soria, I took a photo of some setas that had sprung up over night. According to Google, that's the way they swing. Not very well focused I'm afraid, I was using macro mode but I must have moved the camara.

 

[Barriesimpson]

The van food was Iberian panceta adobada, asparagus and air fryer roasties. Good stuff, the plonk was nice too

 

[Mr porky]

The van food was Iberian panceta adobada, asparagus and air fryer roasties. Good stuff, the plonk was nice too
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Very nice

 

[Barriesimpson]

The rain has gone and we now have bright blue sky, albeit only 18ºC. So we went on a tourist visit to the city of Zaragoza and saw the usual sights, Basilica del Pilar, remains of Roman walls and a few churches too. Some lovely narrow streets in the old part of town and we travelled on the tranvía (a first for me) which was cool.

The Central Market was something to see too, I wish we had this variety in the Canaries...

Impressive architecture in Zaragoza as there is in many other Spanish cities....

Then it was time for a beer in front of the Basilica del Pilar.

 

[Barriesimpson]

For lunch we found a little gem in the narrow streets close to La Plaza de España, La Taberna de Amy where we had a selection of tapas and a bottle of local wine and it was wonderful.

These are fried olives, an original dish from Amy, I had never eaten fried olives before nor seen them on a menu. Fantastic dish, crunchy and olivey (don't think that is a real word, but how else to describe it?), nice innovation.

Then back to the van for a coffee and a whisky.

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[Barriesimpson]

We stayed these two nights in a municipal motorhome area with services except EHU, thanks to today's sun the batteries have lasted well. So thank you to the Gobierno de Aragón.

The tranvía into the city centre is just across the road, very handy.

 

[Barriesimpson]

Calamocha today, a small town on the way to Teruel. Nice town with some interesting architecture.

 

[Barriesimpson]

We are staying overnight in a public carpark found on P4N and recommended. Seems safe and I found a level spot (not all of it is level). This afternoon there is a wedding going on in the hotel next door and they have a really awful band playing, let's hope it's not an all nighter....

 

[Barriesimpson]

Lunch was at 'El Rincón de Luis' a lovely little restaurant hidden in the backstreets of the town.

 

[Barriesimpson]

Teruel, yet another beautiful Spanish city. We are staying under a bridge, just like the homeless but what a bridge. More wonderful architecture, and the old part of town with it's small streets.

La Plaza de Teruel with it's council building and the justice department.

There is the van, almost under the bridge

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