the best of northern spain
Spain, I heart you so much! this visual diary is all about that time I visited the north of Spain.
I was lucky to spend a few days exploring two incredible cities, Logroño and San Sebastian, the mecca of the food and wine industry in the country, yay to all the wine!
I learned everything about the basque culture is all about and now I’m quite impressed I didn’t know they have their own language and seven different dialects, they are one of the oldest ethnic groups in Europe (say what?) and they have the best (let me rephrase this) THE BEST food scene that I’ve tried in Spain.
Pintxos are MY new obsession.
logroño
We started our travel adventure at Logroño (the heart of La Rioja) with a pintxos crawl tour around the old town. Pintxos are an elevated version of a classic tapas, usually skewered with a toothpick, often to a piece of bread, way more tasty and I’m sure you’ll see the difference immediately.
The best pintxos bars are located within a small radius, at the centerof the old town in Calle del Laurel. This little street is packed with tiny bars, many of which are standing room only (which I LOVED), and many of the bars we visited specialized in just one type of pintxo.
My favourite spot? Bar Soriano! They serve just one type of pintxo – a mushroom and shrimp pintxo made with loads of butter and garlic. They aren’t kidding how GOOD this place is.
You can pair your pintxo with a glass of house wine or a beer (a caña, a small glass or a pinta that is equivalent to a pint) If you want an alcohol free, please TRY the traditional basque drink, a Mosto, a natural grape juice (the same olives they use to produce the wine, yep), served with a slice of orange and olives (hello, perfection?).
How gorgeous is the Old Logroño?
san sebastian
The wonderful team of Campo Viejo hosted this magic trip to the Basque country, showing us how they produce everything locally, all the work that goes behind each bottle produced, and how their winemakers experiment bringing to life la creme de la creme in La Rioja.
If you’re planning to visit San Sebastian, you can also visit their vineyards and bodega, here.
We explored the Old San Sebastian and did MANY spots, trying the local pintxos and wines. If you want some ideas where to go, I loved this post.
While you eat ALL the food in the city, you need to walk to La Concha beach, the best spot to catch the sunset, where you’ll see many couples, kids and dogs enjoying the beauty of San Sebastian.
Couldn’t miss all the good tiles!
This tomato salad is THE thing I’m missing the most from this trip. It’s made with fresh tomatoes, onions, olives, fresh tuna, olive oil and wine vinegar. SO-FREAKING-DELISH.
Can you imagine Nico and Oli in this incredible carousel? oh my heart!
Did you know (I didn’t!) the northern Spain holds one of the highest number of Michelin stars per square meter in the world? So if you’re here, you can’t miss trying one. We had the chance to go to Arzak, San Sebastian’s best gourmet experience three Michelin star (totally deserved), and also one of the world’s top 50 restaurants since 2006, quite impressive right?
