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MAPS
&
LEGENDS
WALKTHESTREETS
ofMadrid, and
it’seasy togetsweptupby theclamorof
urban life, especially ifbigcitiesareyour
first instinct.But is this thepath to the
realSpain?Might theessenceof thissoul-
fulcountryappear inaquieter journey?
“All isnotgold thatglitters,”Miguelde
Cervantes,Spain’smost famousauthor,
remindsus in
DonQuixote
. I listenclosely
andplanmy travel.Withonlya fewdays,
mygoal isnothing less than insightand
discovery, inspirationandrelaxation.
Iwant toreturnhomerecharged.The
chosen target:CastileyLeón, thenorth-
westernregionoutsideMadrid.This is
aplace forhistoryandwine, castlesand
cathedrals; awindow intoaworldwhere
long-goneroyals,monksandartistsre-
mindus thatmodern lifehasnoprimacy
overbeautyandwisdom.
The
SoulofSpain
36
NOVEMBER2015
AMERICANWAY
1
Countryside,historyandfinewinemake
CastileyLeónamust-visit
WINETASTING
RiberaDelDuero
In theearly 1980s, this regionwas home to
barely adozenwineestates, overshadowedby
theneighboringRioja region. But over the last
fewdecades, RiberaDelDuerohas emerged
as oneof Spain’s topwinemaking locales and
nowboasts nearly 300
bodegas
(wineries),
including theprestigiousAbadíaRetuerta. In
the 12th century,monks begangrowinggrapes
here along thebanks of theDuero, a river that
traverses the region’s 90-mile length fromVal-
ladolidon itsway toPortugal and theAtlantic
Ocean. The rich reds deriveprimarily from the
Tempranillogrape, benefiting from thehigh
concentrationof sunshine and largedifferences
betweenday andnight temperatures. In ad-
dition to the vineyards, the sandyearth is also
dottedwithoak, pine andeye-pleasingpatches
of sunflower, lavender andotherwildflowers.
