Address: Pza. San Juan · 01300 Laguardia (Alava) Spain
Phone: +34 945 621 192
Website: www.bodegaelfabulista.com
Visiting hours: Monday thru Saturday from 11:30AM to 1:00PM and from 5:30Pm to 7:00PM/ Sundays and Holidays from 11:30 AM to 1:00PM only.

La Bodega El Fabuslista (The Fabulist’s Cellar) stands out among the underground cellars. It is located under the Palace of the Samaniegos, where Félix María de Samaniego was inspired to write his literary works, nowadays it is the tourist office. The cellar is prepared for tourist and cultural visits and elaborates its wines in a traditional way, for the pleasure of its visitors. The winery is located right in the center of Laguardia, a medieval town set in a landscape dominated by ancient dolmens and vineyards. This town, renowned for a thousand years as a center for wine-growing and wine making as well as for the famed views of the Sierra de Cantabria mountain range.

El Fabulista is one of only two wineries that continue to process their wines within the confines of the walled town of Laguardia. It has two wine presses that produce 32,000 liters a year. Wine is pressed using traditional methods with grapes from the winery’s own vineyards following the time honored process of crushing the grapes with their feet. The result is a wine with a bright, vivid color, fine aroma and a very pleasant taste marketed under the names of “Decidido”, “Fabula” and “Bodega El Fabulista”- all available at the winery shop.

The underground medieval winery has been refurbished for visitors and is open every day of the week, although it is always a good idea to make an appointment (especially for large groups). The visit starts with the history of the winery, followed by an interesting explanation of the wine making process. The route follows a passageway that burrows beneath the mansion of the Samaniego family and leads to the main feature of the winery, three parallel and interconnected vaults. Each vault has a different function: one is used to process wine, another to age it and a third is used for wine tasting.

Laguardia was founded by the King Sancho Abarca of Navarra in the 10th century as a protection from the Arabs. Its subsoil is riddled with 320 wine cellars excavated under the houses. This fortified town, incorporated in Alava in 1486, is considered the capital of the Rioja Alavesa and has got about 1,500 inhabitants.  Laguardia has kept up the ancient walls intact, which has helped in its being declared “Conjunto Monumental” in 1964.