abadía retuerta, ribera del duero

the ideal day at abadía retuerta bon dia

Wake up at your leisure and head to the chapel for breakfast  - I love that the hours are late leaning, as the property is a prime destination to sleep in. The à la carte, waiter serviced breakfast is delicious, and I love the mix and match nature of it. There are no struct guidelines on what’s included so you do not feel penny pinched at all. A bread basket with jam and honey is brought to the table, and you can choose additional starters like a fruit bowl, cereal, or yogurt. Then choose a main like avocado toast, banana oat pancakes (perfect for our toddler) eggs various ways including a local Spanish potato omlette. The sides are the best part – iberico ham (probably 10 euros worth in the side alone, based on their menu prices during other meals) crispy bacon, etc.
 
Mid-morning, head out for a stroll. There's a backyard path trimmed into the lawn, a fountain, and pelican watching out of the unbelievable nest on the roof. Alternatively, head out the back door for the extensive gardens and flowers just down the hill. These are much larger, and they were designed based off of a sketch that was uncovered from the monk’s gardens in the _ (check Instagram.) The leaf arches are gorgeous, and serene to walk through. (If you’re a VVIP, you will see these when you arrive via the adjacent helipad.)
 
If you’re feeling extra active, check out the zen yoga studio or adjacent gym, or go on a run through the gravel paths on both sides of the road (the abbey is to the north of the highway, and the winery is to the south, the estate’s lands are spread around the surrounding _ acres.)
Midday, join the Abbey’s bakery experience with the lovely Chef Africa.  [is this only offered at 11am? If so, best paired with a day where you are having an earlier breakfast, so it can substitute for lunch.]
While at first I struggled with the 195 per person price point, when you realize it includes a bubbly lunch, it becomes much more reasonable – the plate of jamon iberico alone costs 40 – so consider it 100 per person for food and drinks, and 100 per person for the cooking class, and it makes more sense. That is why I suggest doing this mid day (if you have an ealy breakfast, the 11 am start will be perfect, but if you have a late breakfast, I will see if it’s possible to move the tour a bit later so you aren’t too full to enjoy the pizza lunch.) They may just bring you to the breakfast room or the dark bar if you don’t ask, but we brought the leftovers out to the interior courtyard which was the perfect place to enjoy lunch. 
Early afternoon, head to enjoy the spa. As it should be, spa access is provided to all hotel guests (drives me crazy when this is not the case.) Pick a treatment from the list, I felt they were pretty pricey so just opted for a 30 minute massage – at 120 euros it only came to 30 + tip after the $100 Virtuoso spa credit you get when booking through me. The experience of the spa is well enjoyed weather or not you have a treatment, which is great. My favorite part is the relaxation room that looks out onto the grass oasis.
 
Around 4pm, it’s wine time. Your options to visit the winery are either to be picked up by the private chauffeured tour, which is included if you’re staying in a suite, or to grab one of the provided bicycles to pop across the road. The tour (last departure of 4pm) was a nice leisurely experience, meandering through the gravel roads of the vineyard as you discuss the story of how it came to be, a stop at a vantage point, then on to a facilities and cellar tour inside the winery. It seemed like a huge miss that they don’t conduct at least one tasting al fresco at the vantage point! What’s the point of a private car if there’s no special treats provided. I would not pay extra for the tour if it were not included with my room, and would instead head to the wine bar or summer-only patio restaurant at the winery. (Reservations required at the latter - we could not get in even as hotel guests.)

Roll your wine buzz into evening drinks – Abadía dissapointingly only serves patio drinks in the summer (despite gorgeous weather in our late May stay, I guess it was not considered summer) but the pro of this is you can then BYOB and drink the wine bottle welcome gift from the room, or something you picked up at a winery tour. You can also order a bite or drink to go from the bar restaurant and bring it outside yourself.

After happy hour, head to Refectorio for a Michelin starred dinner (it was not my favorite food-wise, but the ambiance was incredible, so the experience was still enjoyable. The deserts were my favorite part. I would personally not spring for the wine pairings, especially if you did the vineyard tour, as they use a lot of their own wine, so it felt overpriced.)