Turismo de Galicia

Monterrei Wine Route
Rúa Castelao, nº 10, baixo
32600 Verín Ourense
M: 988 590 007
www.rutadelvinomonterrei.com
info@domonterrei.com

One of its most emblematic and renowned monuments is – badge of the D.O. - the Condes de Monterrei castle of the XII century, being today a national monument. The first printer’s press of Galicia was installed in this castle and in its weapons court we can find the so called pozo verde (green well) surrounded by legends of infidelity and suicides like that of the wife of D. Pedro el Cruel (Peter the cruel).

The Ruta de la Plata  (Southeast Way) crosses this D.O.; following this Saint James Way we find the town of Verín, famous for its Entroido (carnival), an obliged date within the touristic and cultural landscape of Galicia. It’s about an ancestral custom that surprises the visitor, who soon goes from being a simple spectator to fully participating in that great popular event.

In Verín we can visit the traditional quarter of San Lázaro, the  Casa del Asistente, (emblazoned home), with its very big and singular coat of arms, and walking through the streets of its old town we will enjoy other monuments and modern style buildings….Also we can approach the old baths spread along the territory, which are dedicated today to the production of a very well-known medicinal mineral water.

Production, history, varieties

The production area is formed by the municipalities of Monterrei, Oimbra, Verín, Castrelo do Val, Riós and Vilardevós, establishing two subareas: the Valley and Slope of Monterrei. This differentiation is a result of a great variety of soils and guidelines that together with the microclimates that are generated on the hillsides, produce wines with very differentiated characteristics, personalized and with a great aromatic complexity.

Following the historical development, we can state that the Romans introduced wine-producing that later and thanks to the Religious Orders was expanded to the rest of the region. The wine was used as a tribute or tax to pay to the monasteries and feudal lords. After various avatars that resulted in the loss of the importance of viticulture, nowadays the bet for quality wines, among other aspects, are taking the region to its revival.

Among the varieties of white grapes we find the native ones, Doña Blanca, Godello, that is also called Verdello, and Treixadura. In red ones stand out, Mencía, Merenzao and others that have acclimatized themselves to the area like Arauxa (Tempranillo) and Garnacha Tintorera. The kind of wines that are fundamentally produced are white, fresh, very nice and fruity with an excellent balance between alcohol and acidity, well structured and sweet toothed. Among the reds stand out the young with their great live fragrance, fruity, with body and very expressive to which are added the most exclusive elaborations with great complexity and longevity.