Visit and tasting at Bodegas Martínez Alesanco, in Badarán

Martínez Alesanco is a family winery in Badarán, in the Alto Najerilla, about five minutes by car from the monasteries of San Millán. It makes D.O.Ca. Rioja wine from the grapes of its own vineyards in the valley, and opens the winery to visitors almost every day of the year: a guided tour lasting an hour and a half, and a shorter tasting you do at your own pace.

From the village cellars to the 2020 winery

The family says it has been making wine in Badarán for centuries. Until 1993 it made wine in old cave cellars in the village; in 1994 it built its first modern winery and in 2020 it finished the ageing and visitor-reception facilities you see today. They work twelve vineyards of their own on the red soils of the San Millán valley, between 553 and 750 metres above sea level, some with old Garnacha vines. From these comes a long range: reds from young to gran reserva, an organic one, Garnachas aged in clay jars, whites and rosés fermented in barrel, and a vermouth.

The guided tour, from the cellar to the glass

You tour the winery with a guide, in Spanish, and finish with a tasting of four wines accompanied by a zero-mile Rioja nibble. Children are served grape juice. It lasts an hour and a half and groups are of 20 people at most.

There are tours from Wednesday to Saturday at 11:00 and 17:00, and on Sundays and public holidays at 11:00. For Mondays, Tuesdays or a private tour, you need to ask. It costs €20 per adult and €6 for ages 5 to 17. You can add a plate of Iberian ham, a cheese board or Santoña anchovies, paid separately. The tour in English has its own booking on the website.

The premium tasting, when you are short of time

It is five wines in a free tasting, with chorizo, village bread and olive oil, and afterwards you can go into the barrel room on your own. It lasts about 35 minutes and costs €15 per adult. It runs Monday to Saturday from 10:00 to 13:30 and from 16:00 to 19:00, and on Sundays and public holidays from 10:00 to 13:30, in groups of eight people at most. Both timetables may change with the season.

If you only want to taste and buy, the winery also welcomes visitors without a booking.

Calle José García, 20

The winery is at Calle José García, 20, in Badarán. They ask you to arrive ten minutes early for the guided tour and five for the tasting. Book by phone on 941 367 075, by WhatsApp on 655 194 924 or by email; larger groups are arranged by phone.

The Sunday 11:00 tour leaves time for the Yuso monastery at midday and lunch at In Vino Veritas, which opens at midday at weekends; it is the order of the Sunday in San Millán.