On one of our day trips out of San Sebastian we started with a visit to a cider mill. CIder is very popular along the northen Spanish coast, often in places that are not suitable for producing grapes. Most of the cider that is produced is still and to produce some kind of froth it is poured from a height as can be seen in the photo below. What is poured is drunk quickly and then the whole process is repeated. This cider really needs food and the chorizo we were given was a great accompaniment.
Heading towards the coast, we then visited a winery where they produce txakoli. Txakoli is principally a white wine made mainly from the hondarribi zuri grape. I remember tasting txakoli for the first time around 30 years ago finding it to be incredibly acidic. Iit’s still noticeably acidic now but is much more agreeable. We got to taste some very good wines with tapas on a balcony with a beautiful view over the vineyards, The wines included one which had be aged for some time on the lees.
Lunch was at a great seafood restuarant in the wonderful fishing town of Getaria where I have had the pleasure to eat at on a number of occasions. The main course was turbot which was delicious.
After lunch we went to a workshop at a small company that makes artisanal fish preserves. We were there to learn how to clean and bottle cured anchovies. This was great fun with everyone getting to take home their own bottle of what for me is a veritable gastronomic delight!
