Experience the best of Elciego

Elciego sits on a hill above the Ebro valley in Rioja Alavesa, the part of the Rioja wine region that lies in the Basque Country, with the Sierra de Cantabria rising to the north. The old village has stone houses, narrow lanes and a hilltop church. At its edge, a hotel and winery designed by the architect Frank Gehry rises above the cellars with a rippling titanium roof in pink, gold and silver.

Laguardia, a walled hill town with wine cellars dug beneath its houses, lies to the north-east, and Haro, the centre of the Rioja Alta, is farther west. Vineyards, olive groves and small villages cover the valley, and Logroño, the capital of La Rioja, is about fifteen kilometres to the east. Vitoria-Gasteiz is the nearest large city to the north.

Rioja's cooking is built around lamb chops grilled over vine cuttings, potatoes stewed with chorizo and, in autumn, small white beans called pochas. Local reds from the tempranillo grape are served with all of it. The harvest in September and October is the high point, and by late October the vine leaves turn gold and red across the valley.