6 inspiring food and wine routes in &

Pla de Tudela, Cap de Creus. Josep Miquel Guasch. Arxiu Imatges PTCBG

ROUTE 3 Scenic Cap de Creus

This route will take you along some of the most spectacular scenic roads on the Costa Brava. From Colera to Roses, 80km of beautiful Mediterranean coastline and green vineyards overlooking the sea. Small coves with crystalline water, the Cap de Creus Natural Park, the tramontana wind and la mar d’amunt, as the area between Cadaqués and Cerbère is calledd... This is the landscape which inspired the great genius Salva- dor Dalí. Would you like to discover it?

1. : Birthplace of Genius Salvador 4. Wines Rooted in the Empordà, at Espelt Dalí Viticultors The city of Figueres, at the foot of the Pyrenees, is Espelt Viticultors is another winery with a family linked inseparably with its most emblematic figure: tradition, with spectacular vineyards and wines. Salvador Dalí. The Dalí Theatre-Museum is the Are you adventurous? Jump into the winery’s 4×4 artist’s last great work; a completely experimental and drive off to explore the different terroirs. Are museum displaying the genius’s work and thought. you a gourmet? Then savour breakfast looking But apart from Dalí, Figueres will also tempt you out over the vineyards and discover the secrets with its authentic Alt Empordà food and wine, of their winemaking and the tramontana country with DO Empordà wines and local produce like that shapes these wines so markedly. Figueres onions and ’s stuffed apples.

5. The Mediterranean in its Purest Form: 2. Empordà Tradition at the Cooperativa Enokayak with SK Kayak de In the fishing village of Llançà,SK Kayak proposes With over 50 years’ history, the Cooperativa de an authentic wine tourism experience deeply Garriguella offers full breakfasts and lunches rooted in the region of Cap de Creus and the based on top local produce of cultural value as Albera: Enokayak, paddling from cove to cove well as different wine tourism activities including and tasting the wines of the green vineyards visits to the old airfield and the bunkers dating overlooking the sea, from the Hugas de Batlle back to the Spanish Civil War in Garriguella. winery.

3. Empordàlia: Bringing Together the 6. Heroic Winemaking at Celler Hugas de Worlds of Wine and Oil Batlle Follow the main road out of Garriguella, through These are the first vineyards in the Iberian Peninsula vineyard country, until you come to the Empordàlia to see the sun rise every morning. Hugas de Batlle cooperative in the village of Pau, which offers will show you around his spectacular terraced guided visits to its winery and also has a shop estates with views of the Mediterranean in his 4×4: selling a large selection of DO Empordà wines and adventure guaranteed! While you’re here, why not oils from Pau produced at its oil mill, along with visit Colera and go to the beach for a swim in the other fresh local produce from the Empordà. crystalline waters? At its restaurant area, called ‘L’Empordà a Taula’, in their farm shop in Vilajuïga, you can have a hearty country breakfast or an aperitif. 7. : from the Vineyard to the Monastery Would you like to find out all about the curiosities of monastic life and its connection with the world of wine? Did you know that the first winemaking 6 inspiring food and wine routes in Costa Brava & Girona Pyrenees

book was written at Sant Pere de Rodes back in 11. From Tudela to the Cap de Creus 1130? You can discover all this and more with the Lighthouse visit called ‘From the Vineyard to the Monastery’ and finish up with a wine tasting on its spectacular The route continues to the natural site of Tudela, terrace overlooking the Mediterranean. where the extraordinary geology was once a source of inspiration for the genius Salvador Dalí. Drive on to the Cap de Creus Lighthouse for a local 8. , the Best Kept Secret aperitif or a glass of DO Empordà wine, or simply on the Costa Brava enjoy the stunning views. This part of the Empordà has little to envy other great beauty spots around To the north of Cap de Creus the little fishing the world. village, El Port de la Selva, nestles hidden away amid the great scenic beauty created by the combination of the blue of the Mediterranean 12. Cadaqués and Salvador Dalí’s House in with the green of the vineyards that surround it. Go for a stroll around the fishing port and the different narrow streets, with their emblematic Follow the road to the village of Cadaqués, a whitewashed houses huddling together against refuge for artists from all over the world. Its narrow the tramontana wind. streets of whitewashed houses have managed to conserve the most authentic spirit of the Costa Brava. While you’re there, don’t miss a visit to 9. Organic and Biodynamic Winemaking Salvador Dalí’s House in Portlligat, where the at Mas Estela Winery artist painted many of his works and which was the only stable home that Salvador Dalí had. A paradigm of organic and biodynamic winemaking in the privileged setting of Cap de Creus Natural Park. That is Mas Estela in a nutshell, a family- 13. Roses, elBullifoundation and its run winery that conveys the terroir in each of its Spectacular Coves wines. The winery is a member of the Ceps de Cap de Creus Association, formed by three organic The fishing town of Roses, one of the best spots winemakers working in the Natural Park. for watching the sunset on the Costa Brava, was the place where Ferran Adrià revolutionised the world of international cuisine with his restaurant, 10. A Winery in the Heart of Cap de Creus: el Bulli, now converted into elBullifoundation. Martín Faixó The secondary road leading to the restaurant is amazing... In the heart of Cap de Creus Natural Heading towards Cadaqués, on a road with one of Park you’ll discover a series of unspoilt coves that the most breathtaking views in the Empordà, you’ll are pure Costa Brava and, on top of that, you’ll find find theMartín Faixó winery: an innovative wine the singular Mas Marès estate, the third member tourism experience. Visit the winery and taste its of Ceps de Cap de Creus, with its spectacular wines, relax and unwind by practising mindfulness organic vineyard overlooking the Bay of Roses. in the vineyards and relish the silence at night in one of its suites in the heart of Cap de Creus. This winery is also a member of Ceps de Cap de Creus.

EXTRA!

» Where to eat: Els Pescadors, Dràulic, Es Baluard, Compartir, Can Rafa, Casa Anita, S’Enoteca, Can Cervera by la Croqueta, Els Brancs (1 Michelin star), Empórium (1 Michelin star) » Where to stay: Hotel Cala Jòncols, Hotel Hotel Spa Terraza, Villa Gala, Mas Lazuli, Mas Vivent, Hotel