The French Way, the Primitive Way, the Vía de la Plata, the Lana Way, the Mozarabic Way … there are many pilgrimage itineraries created throughout history to reach the goal of Santiago de Compostela, and it is rare that any of them do not cross part of the territory of any of the Wine Routes of Spain.
For this reason, and taking advantage of the fact that this year 2021 is the Jacobean Year, the Spanish Association of Wine Cities (Acevin) have wanted to take a tour of all of them following the network of Caminos de Santiago, in order to inspire and facilitate future wine tourism trips:
Alicante Wine Route. Through the Mediterranean many pilgrims arrived and the most prominent ports became the starting point of Jacobean itineraries. The Camino del Sureste starts from Alicante and runs through the peninsula to Benavente, where it joins the Vía de la Plata. Novelda, Petrer, Sax or Villena are some of the towns on the Wine Route that this Camino passes through. The Camino de La Lana also runs through these same towns in its Alicante variant.
Arlanza Wine Route. Just before arriving in Burgos, the Camino de La Lana crosses the eastern part of this Route that runs on one side and the other of the Arlanza River, a path that follows old paths linked to livestock and trade, especially that of wool. . In its last sections, the Camino passes through Santo Domingo de Silos and Covarrubias.
Arribes Wine Route. San Felices de los Gallegos was a recurring point on the trip to Santiago as it had a pilgrim hospital within the walls. Today it has disappeared, but the route of the Jacobean path through the West Branch of the Vía de la Plata, which ends in Salamanca, remains.
Bierzo Wine Route. Up to four of the Jacobean paths converge on this Route: the French Way runs through towns such as Molinaseca, Ponferrada, Camponaraya, Cacabelos and Villafranca del Bierzo. The Winter Road departs from Ponferrada and was used when the snow made it difficult to climb O Cebreiro. The Manzanal Way, which passes through Bembibre and Ponferrada, and the Forgotten Way, very frequented in the 10th, 11th and 12th centuries, which starts from Bilbao and passes through the towns of Congosto, Cubillos del Sil and Cabañas Raras until reaching to Cacabelos.
Bullas Wine Route. Although this Route does not coincide with any itinerary, there is one, the Argar Route, which passes a few kilometers from Cehegín, one of the three municipalities of the wine region and which is located next to Caravaca de la Cruz, one of the landmarks in that Route of the Argar that is born in Murcian lands.
Calatayud Wine Route. The unknown Camino de Sagunto crosses this Route and has the city of Calatayud as one of its landmarks. This road connects Puerto de Sagunto, on the Valencian coast, with Burgos, through the Castilian-Aragonese Way. Its origin dates back to the 12th century and would be the route taken by pilgrims who disembarked in the port of Sagunto from Italy.
Campo de Cariñena Wine Route. The Camino del Ebro is closest to this Route. The Camino de Sagunto runs to the south, but already in neighboring Calatayud. Thus, the Campo de Cariñena region lies between both paths.
Cigales Wine Route. The Camino de Madrid, which starts from the capital and reaches Sahagún, crosses Valladolid lands bordering the territory of this Route, a path that began to be used in the 12th century, when the southern regions of the Duero were repopulated. These repopulations, which were made with people arriving from Galicia, determined precisely the dedication of the church of Cigales to Santiago Apóstol. This church is also known as the Cathedral of Wine.
Garnacha-Campo de Borja Wine Route. Two Jacobean paths cross this territory: the Camino del Ebro, which starts at the mouth of the Ebro and ends in Logroño, and the Camino Castellano-Aragonés. The town of Mallén is on the itinerary of the first while Borja and Magallón are the milestones of this Route that we find in the Castilian-Aragonese, a path rescued recently and that runs along old roads close to the current highways.
Gran Canaria Wine Route. A Jacobean path also runs along this route, which runs through the island from south to north, from Tunte to Gáldar. Its origin is in the legend that tells that, during the Middle Ages, a great storm surprised a ship in the south of Gran Canaria in which Galician sailors were traveling, and they entrusted themselves to the Apostle Santiago, promising to build a hermitage if he helped them . Safe and sound they fulfilled their promise by building that church in the mountains of Tirajana. For its part, in Gáldar, the first temple dedicated to Santiago outside the continent was built in 1485.
Jumilla Wine Route. The Camino del Sureste that starts from Alicante has a variant that runs from Cartagena and passes through the territory of Jumilla and, on the itinerary, we find some wineries on the way. Once in the city, it is interesting to visit the beautiful church of Santiago that houses an altarpiece where the life of the Apostle is represented.
La Mancha Wine Route. El Toboso, one of the towns that is part of the territory of this Route, is one of the milestones of the itinerary of the Camino del Sureste, which has been known since the 16th century. On the other hand, other towns on the Route, such as Alcázar de San Juan and Tomelloso, are part of the Ruta del Argar, a Jacobean itinerary that connects Lorca (Murcia) with Mora (Toledo).
La Manchuela Wine Route. The towns of Casas Ibáñez and Alcalá del Júcar are part of the Camino de La Lana. This pilgrimage route follows the old sheep transhumance routes that linked the lands of Cuenca with Burgos, the commercial capital of wool during the 16th and 17th centuries, from where this product was exported to England and Flanders. It is one of the oldest commercial routes in the Iberian Peninsula.
Lleida-Costers del Segre Wine Route. The Camí de Sant Jaume passes through Lleida, an itinerary that emerged as an alternative to the French Way, which followed a good part of the route of the Via Augusta and was the one chosen above all by pilgrims who came from the Languedoc region and Italy.
Madrid Wine Route. The Camino de Madrid that coincides with this Route is the Camino del Sureste, which passes through Cenicientos and Cadalso de los Vidrios, where we also find some wineries.
The Marco de Jerez Wine and Brandy Route. The Camino de Santiago Vía Augusta passes through Puerto Real, El Puerto de Santa María and Jerez de la Frontera, towns that belong to the Wine Route and where we can see different examples of buildings related to the Apostle, such as the church of Santiago, in Sherry.
Montilla-Moriles Wine Route. The Mozárabe Way runs along the Route with towns such as Cabra, Lucena, Doña Mencía, Espejo, Castro del Río, Baena and Córdoba. From the Cordovan capital, the Camino heads towards Extremadura to connect with the Vía de la Plata.
Navarra Wine Route. The French Way enters the peninsula through Navarre, with numerous wineries on the Route along the way. Another, the Aragonese Way, also enters the territory, from Sangüesa, and joins the French Way in the place where the striking octagonal Romanesque church of Santa María de Eunate is located, near Obanos and Puente la Reina.
Penedès Wine Route. The Route is located precisely between several of the branches of the Camí de Sant Jaume. Towards the north, you can link with the Camino in Montserrat or in Igualada. There are other paths that cross the area of the Wine Route itself and that link Vilafranca del Penedès with Santes Creus.
Rías Baixas Wine Route. Several Jacobean paths pass through different areas of this Route: the Portuguese Way passes through Tui (in O Rosal) or Arcade (in Soutomaior), the Camino de la Costa passes through A Guarda (in the area of O Rosal) and Portecelo, the Ruta del Mar de Arousa and Río Ulla, which runs through places in the O Salnés area such as Sanxenxo, O Grove, Cambados and Vilagracia de Arousa, among others, and through this same region also runs the Ruta del Padre Sarmiento, a variant of the Portuguese Way.
Ribera del Duero Wine and Cava Route. The Camino de La Lana passes through San Esteban de Gormaz, which is not only one of the oldest commercial routes on the peninsula, but also one of the longest, linked to transhumance.
Ribera del Guadiana Wine Route. Zafra, Villafranca de los Barros, Los Santos de Maimona or Almendralejo are some of the towns on this Route that are also on the itinerary of the Vía de la Plata, the Jacobean road that connects Seville with Astorga and Santiago. The Mozarabic Way also reaches Mérida, which, after traveling through the eastern and central provinces of Andalusia, enters Extremadura to join the Vía de la Plata in the old Emerita Augusta.
Rioja Alavesa Wine Route. Salinillas de Buradón is the only town on this Route that coincides with a Jacobean itinerary, the so-called Inland Basque Way that connects Irún with the French Way, following the layout of ancient Roman roads.
Rioja Alta Wine Route. The French Way, the best known and most popular, is the one that runs through the territory of this Wine Route. From Navarra it enters La Rioja through Logroño and continues through an area of wide valleys and gentle hills, between vineyards and cereal fields, passing through towns such as Navarrete and Nájera, all of which belong to the Route.
Rioja Oriental Wine Route. The Camino del Ebro, which connected with the French in Logroño, passes through towns on this Route such as Alfaro, Rincón de Soto, Calahorra, Agoncillo, Alcanadre or Arrubal.
Ronda-Malaga Wine Route. The Camino Mozárabe has several branches from different Andalusian cities and although it does not coincide with the territory of the Route, it does pass near some of its areas, such as Moclinejo, El Borge and Mollina.
Rueda Wine Route. Three roads cross this route. The Southeast Way passes through Medina del Campo, Rueda and Tordesillas, the route of the Madrid Way through Nava de la Asunción, Alcazarén, Olmedo, Hornillos de Eresma, Matapozuelos, Mojados and Valdestillas, and the Camino de Levante, which passes through Medina del Campo, Nava del Rey and Castronuño.
Sierra de Francia Wine Route. This route runs very close to the route of the Vía de la Plata, through Montemayor del Río, about eleven kilometers from Baños de Montemayor, the milestone of the Compostela road. From here, many pilgrims made the detour to visit the Marian shrine of the Black Virgin, in the Peña de Francia. This old route (in which various hospitals for pilgrims were built) passes through towns on the Route such as Montemayor del Río, Sotoserrano, Herguijuela de la Sierra, Miranda del Castañar or Monforte de la Sierra.
Somontano Wine Route. The small town of Costean, which has numerous toponyms related to Santiago, is the only one on this Route that appears on a Jacobean itinerary.
Toro Wine Route. The last stage of the Camino de Levante leads from Toro to Zamora, where this Jacobean route connects with the Vía de la Plata. The wineries that belong to the Route are scattered throughout the region.
Utiel-Requena Wine Route. Also in this territory we find the Camino de la Lana, which visits almost all the municipalities that are part of the Route such as Siete Aguas, Requena, Caudete de las Fuentes, Utiel, Fuenterrobles and Camporrobles.
Valdepeñas Wine Route. The Route does not pass any of the official Jacobean routes, but it is surrounded by two itineraries: the Camino Manchego, which starts from Ciudad Real and joins the Camino del Sureste in Toledo, and the Ruta del Argar, which starts from the Murcian town of Lorca and that, in Mora, in La Mancha lands, joins the Camino del Sureste.
Yecla Wine Route. It is one of the milestones of the Camino del Sureste, which comes here from Villena following the paths of old medieval paths and Roman roads and enters the highlands of the Region of Murcia, crossing the quiet steppe plains and fields of vineyards and olive trees that are part of this entoruístico territory.