After resting up from our Dolomite trek, Forrest and I caught our flight to Spain for a dedicated week of wine and food celebrating our twentieth anniversary.
Our trip started in Priorat, staying at Terra Dominicata, a place we fell completely in love with. Tucked away among the rugged slate hills, it was quiet, beautiful, and the perfect base. Priorat wine was the big revelation of the trip for us. The mineral-heavy slate soils give the reds here an intensity and depth that immediately won us over, making it hard to pack up when it was time to move on.
From Priorat, we drove west into La Rioja and started with a stay at Finca de los Arandinos, surrounded by vines and modern architecture.
From there, we moved to Santa María Briones to base ourselves directly in the medieval town for the rest of our time in the region. Briones has roots reaching back more than two thousand years to the ancient Berones tribe, with medieval fortress walls and stone palaces that date back to the 1500s. Staying inside those historic streets quickly made it one of my favorite stops. I got up early in the morning with my camera while the town was completely quiet, catching the warm, low light hitting the centuries-old stone facades and empty alleys before anyone else was awake.
The highlight of the week was celebrating our 20th anniversary. To celebrate, we booked a private tour, tasting, and lunch at Bodegas Roda in nearby Haro. Walking through the barrel cellars and spending hours over an incredible meal paired with their wines was easily the most memorable afternoon of the entire trip.
