LA RIOJA

La Rioja is, without doubt, one of Spain’s up-and-coming destinations for the discerning traveller.

Its wines languished in backwatery obscurity during the 1980s – now they are de rigueur; its cuisine is shedding humble Basque beginnings to give the Michelin-starred stronghold of nearby San Sebastian a run for its money; and – the most exciting aspect of the Riojan reinvention – the new wave of stylish avant-garde architecture.

Everyone is now familiar with the spectacular sight that is the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao but that was really only the start.  Since then Frank Gehry has given us the remarkable Marques de Riscal Hotel en Elciego with other architects such as Santiago Calatrava and Zaha Hadid jostling for international acclaim with their own weird and wonderful creations