Wine Tasting in Spain
 

Hi,
I'm going to be traveling around Spain in September and was wondering about wine tasting tours as day trips. I've looked at several online places that specialize in tours, but they are all either a few days long or very expensive, like 350-500E a person.
I understand that you can't just walk in like in California or Oregon. Does any one know of tour companies that do day trips from cities? For example, they'd pick you up at your hotel or at a meeting point, drive out to a winery for a tasting, and would not cost over 150E. I don't need a very fancy ride or a gourmet lunch, just a wine tasting would be great.
If something like that doesn't exist, does anyone know if there are places in the cities that have local wine tasting? Thanks for any help!

Ashes,
As you know from your research,

There are several companies that do this from Madrid, but they all include a gourmet lunch after the tastings. Viavinum is one such company, but their day long tours to the Toledo wineries from Madrid and trips to the Penedés from Barcelona cost 250-265. And prices of tours from Vintage Spain are equally steep.

From Bilbao, Le Tango tours offers an 8 hr. trip to the capital of the Rioja Alavesa region, Laguardia, for wine touring in private limo, but there's a min. of 4 people for it to run and cost is 160.

From Sevilla, A Question of Taste offers wine tasting tours to the sherry distilleries of Jerez and manzanilla houses of Sanlúcar de Barrameda. If you can get in on a tour with 3 other people, it will cost you 140, including gourmet lunch.
www.aqot.com

The company Wine Time offers 3 full day excursions to the wineries in the La Mancha D.O. around Toledo, but no prices listed.
www.winetime.com

From Barcelona, you can easily do the cava cellars in Sant Sadurní d'Anoia on your own by taking the commuter train (cercanías) from the city to the train station in the town and walk across the street to the Freixenet cellars or grab a taxi afterwards over to Codorníu. There are other cellars to visit in this capital of Spain's bubbly as well.

www.freixenet.com
www.codorniu.com

Since you also mentioned places in the cities that have local wine tastings,
here are two-

In Madrid, at Planeta Vino (for 25-30 euros p.p.)
www.planetavino.net

In Sevilla, the above-mentioned A Question of Tsste has more expensive (65-85 euro) tastings in the upstairs of Seville oldest tavern (very atmospheric), El Rinconcillo
www.aqot.com

Awesome! Thank you so much Maribel.

Hi Ashes,


I can highly recommend http://www.planetavino.net .They are very professional and warm couple (shes american, he Basque). I personnel have done tasting with them in the passed and loved it.

D

Seeing your trip is in September you may not be able to visit some bodegas as the harvest maybe at the same time. If so things will be very busy and they may have little time for visitors.