“There is no sincerer love than the love of food.”
(Bernard Shaw)
The story of the event or experience, how it started and evolved to its current form, when it started, what is unique about it, how popular the experience is with locals/visitors to the area etc…
Located in the municipality of Munera (north-west of the Albacete province), in one of the most famous landscapes of Don Quixote’s travelling, Aldonza is a quite unique place which brings together a selection of some of the area’s most well-known and exquisite products.
This family business was established 4 generations ago and mostly made wine for self-consumption and for the pleasure of friends and family, following traditional manufacturing processes and know-how that was passed from parents to children. However, as word spread, and the number of the pledged orders increased the time had come to take the big step.
In 2011 new manufacturing facilities were built and a new dawn started for Aldonza. Nowadays the traditional knowledge co-exists with sophisticated and environmentally friendly technology and has enabled the company to offer not only high-quality wine and extra virgin olive oil, but also diversify its product offer with saffron, white sparkling wine (cava) and Manchego cheese, becoming thus a unique place where visitors may enjoy a complete gourmet experience.
Another quite particular feature is a free-of-charge guided tour combined with wine and extra virgin olive oil taste which may be booked throughout the week. It takes the attendants through the facilities of the winery, olive mill and the saffron production to finish in a beautiful underground “cave” where the tasting takes place.
Furthermore, in its website the company invites visitors to get a deeper experience by visiting historical, nature or archeological surroundings, explaining the historical relevance and how the area (and eventually Aldonza) is related to the Don Quixote adventures, acting so as one of the main attractions of the municipality.
Tell the customer what they will get and why they should include this experience in the itinerary. What food/beverage is included, what producers they will meet.
The wine and olive oil guided tour and tasting experience
This experience includes a tour of the biggest part of the Aldonza facilities including the wine-manufacturing, the olive mill and the saffron extraction area. Charismatic and knowledgeable staff members explain visitors in an-easy-to-understand language the particular features of the olive trees and vines due the uniqueness of the climate conditions, how the machineries work, how their processes apply environmentally friendly and circular economy principles, and how the final products are obtained.
The end of the tour will lead the attendants into the cask room where the tasking takes place, located underground in the old wine cellar, where a warm and wonderful setting and the sound of an in-situ waterfall blends with the wood and wine aroma. The visitors will be able to taste three types of wine and gain insight on how to appreciate certain taste of different wines and distinguish features such as quality, alcohol degrees etc.
Similarly, the olive oil tasting aims at offering a taste of good quality products and offering tips and advice on how to distinguish the extra virgin type quality relying on the taste instead of the colour. To that end the tasting is performed in opaque blue glasses.
Cheese tasting is currently suspended due to COVID measures.
List of Local Producers
Aldonza Gourmet
The company’s facilities are located in the outskirts of the municipality of Munera, N-430 Km 462,3, 02612 Munera (Albacete), and remain open during all year long. It can be reached by car and parking is available.
Guided visits and tasting events last approximately 2,5 hours and are carried out any day of the week, however prior booking is highly recommended. Customer support hours are from Monday to Sunday: 08:14:00 and 15:30 – 18:00. More information about the free events, fee of the payable ones, minimum and maximum group sizes etc., is provided by the company’s customer support service . The activities are accessible for visitors with physical disabilities and may be done in English upon request,
Visitors may find accommodation in the surrounding towns of Munera or El Bonillo.
Find us here:
https://www.aldonzagourmet.com/home
E-mail: info@aldonzagourmet.com
Contact telephone numbers: (+34) 967 21 77 11 /(+34) 660 634 959
https://www.aldonzagourmet.com/experiences/experience-aldonza/oleotourism
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