Cider-ways
Forget Sangria and Rioja, Spain’s real liquid treasure is made from apples not grapes. Colan Mehaffey goes in search of cider culture in the Basque country.
IN CIDER INFORMATION Spain’s largest cider producer, El Gaitero, produces 70,000 bottles a day.
The northern Spanish tradition of pouring tour feet is designed—to“ i
aerate the otherwise ilat drink: But this ‘sparkle’iorilylas‘ts tor a ‘few seconds.
Only apples native to the Asturias region are used in making the brew.
Why we The poet Tea takes boldly lead who talks on a whole‘ .3 the way in in plain new
games English flavour
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OIHp “At 'O‘TJ‘W
wo men approaching middle age go on a trek through a
picturesque rural region to sample the best e\aiiiples ol'
their layourite alcoholic be\crage and end tip discoyering much more than they bargained tor . . .
While this could easily be the synopsis l'oi' ()scar winning moyie. .S'i't/t'n‘uys. it also perl'ectly describes the journey a li‘iend and I made through the Basque country ol Northern Spain. sampling the region's labulous cider and stumbling across a culture that is still relatiyely undisturbed by masses ol iioitliern liuropean tourists. lt's understandably surprising that cider. and not wine. is the drink in question. giyen that aitisan production ol‘ the drink is more otten associated with lziigland's \Vest ('ountry or Not'iiiaiidy in l‘l'dllee. and we rarely see little more than Spanish plonk exponed to the Hi. lloweyei' the Basques haye maintained an equally proud tradition ol making and consuming cider (oi‘ sit/m as it is knoth locally l. as my companion and l discoyered when we drank our way along a trail (ll. cider hollses. the I'llltl.\ (lt' lus sit/I'I'I'Iits.
'l‘he undoubted gem ol‘ the region's coastal resorts. San Sebastian. acts as the ideal base lor e\ploring the local sidrerias as some 5‘) ol them can be lound within a twenty— kilometre radius ol‘ the tow n. lt's breathtaking in its own right.
with the belle (l/Nu/m’ styling til. the sealront giy ing it a semblance of the l"i'encli Riviera. the syelte beaches ol the bay being dramatically flanked by mountains. The emphasis on gastronomy here makes it an equally good point to start your immersion into
HAD IN ITS bars ol' the l‘orniei' bullring. l’ltiru (Iv la ('oiisliliit'i'oii. in the Old Town I got the feeling l‘d somehow slipped back in time. More likely it was the el‘l'ect ot~ the l'ained local llt'lll' (lt’
Basque culture. \Vhile spending an eyening strolling around the par/mm”. a sloe-berry based liqueur with a hint ol~ aniseed
that's sery‘ed straight oyer ice. 'l‘hanklully the huge range ol‘
exquisite tapas helped keep me Itio\ltig between watering holes. along with the locals. late into the night. Don‘t. however. expect to hold many conyersations unless you have a working knowledge ol' either ('astillian or the local dialect. liuskadi. The people here are lriendly and happy to help but. rather i'el'i‘esbingly. they don‘t speak much linglish.
Like wineries. the sidrerias range hugely in si/e. lroin those which produce thousands ol' bottles annually to the small l'armhouses with minimal commercial produce. They do. howey‘er. haye a shared history. which is inextricably linked to that ol' the region. (‘ider has been produced in the Basque country and the neighbouring proyince Asturias since around the 17th century. mainly for home consumption or for bartering. Following the Spanish ('iyil War. production was prohibited under the nile of (ieneral Franco and many of the farmers were forced to seek employment in new industries.
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