Bodegas Murua in Elciego is much more than a winery, although the winery building, an old stone manor house surrounded by vineyards in gently rolling countryside, creates a picture perfect image of a classical winery.
This image, along with a spectacular collection of artwork and wine-related literature, earned Bodegas Murua a 2020 ‘Best Of’ Wine Tourism award for Art & Culture from the Great Wine Capitals Global Network.
Inside the manor house, we pause throughout our visit to admire the collection of works of art property of the Masaveu Corporation, including paintings, sculptures and etchings by well-known Spanish artists including Francisco de Goya, Tomás Hiepes, Juan de Arellano, Fernando Sotomayor, Valentín Zubiarre, Francisco Bores, Daniel Quintero and Miquel Barceló. The themes of these works are the harvest, vineyards and wine, depicted in scenes reflecting the popular customs of the time. Murua’s collection also features antique winemaking equipment and handmade objects related to wine.
A second impressive feature of Murua’s art and culture offering is a 2,500 volume library of wine books, magazines and manuscripts dating from the 16th century to the present day, housed in antique bookshelves. It’s easy to imagine the director of the winery perusing these old volumes at his desk or in an armchair.
Murua offers visitors tours of the manor house with its collections of works of art, the vinification plant, ageing cellars, a tasting of varietals directly from the barrel and the 110 hectare (270 acre) vineyard surrounding the winery, providing it with an exclusive source of grapes.
When we last visited Murua during a recent conference of the Institute of Masters of Wine, we enjoyed an extensive tour of the property, a tasting of the entire range of Murua wines, including a spectacular vertical tasting of historical vintages of Murua barrel fermented white and an original ‘ice cider’ from a Masaveu Corporation cider orchard in Asturias on the northern coast of Spain.
These images and experiences proved to us that art and the respect for culture are core values of the Masaveu Corporation at Bodegas Murua.
Bodegas Murua
Carretera de Laguardia s/n.
01340 Elciego (Álava)
T-+34 945 606260
E-info@bodegasmurua.masaveu.com
Tom Perry, Inside Rioja