Ribeira Sacra Wine Centre, in Monforte

On rúa do Comercio, in Monforte's pedestrian centre, between Plaza de España and Plaza del Doctor Goyanes, the Ribeira Sacra Wine Centre explains how vines are grown on the slopes of the Sil and Miño. It is the easiest way to understand the landscape before going to the canyon, and to taste wines from several wineries without driving from one to another.

The building and the exhibition

It occupies a historic 18th-century building that has been a hospital, a casino and a town hall. The rooms are arranged around a central courtyard and form an interactive exhibition on the wines and growing area of the Ribeira Sacra Designation of Origin: the terraces on very steep slopes, the varieties and the work of what they call heroic viticulture here. The same building houses the headquarters of the D.O. Ribeira Sacra Regulatory Board and the municipal tourist office.

Visits and tastings

Every day there are two guided slots with advance booking: at 12:30, with a tasting of three wines, for €7.50, and at 18:00, with one wine, for €3. Ages 6 to 16 pay €1.50, under-6s do not pay and groups of more than 15 people pay €2.50 per person. Book on 982 404 715 or 641 983 195.

Wine shop and tapas

The wine shop opens every day from 10:00 to 14:00 and from 16:30 to 20:30, with a wide selection of D.O. wines and accessories for serving them. It also has a tapas bar with wines from the area and typical dishes. If you like a wine on the visit, it is the place to buy it or to ask which winery to visit next; at the tourist office, in the same building, they have the monthly guide with the hours of wineries, boats and monasteries.

To combine

The 12:30 slot leaves the afternoon free for the Railway Museum, open Wednesday to Sunday, or for the guided visit to the Colegio de Nuestra Señora de la Antigua, on the flat ground beside the river Cabe. If the next day you go to the canyon, the Doade wineries, such as Algueira and Regina Viarum, are a few kilometres away by winding road: better to spread the tastings across the days.