Camino de Santiago: a quick guide to a wine lover’s pilgrimage
By Jill Barth August 13, 2018
Every year, hundreds of thousands of pilgrims arrive annually in Compostela de Santiago, the rewarding end of the Camino de Santiago, or Way of St. James. For those who walk the Camino Francés or French Way – the pilgrimage’s most popular route – reaching the 11th-century cathedral and shrine of Saint James is the culmination of nearly 500 miles of roads and trails.
Navarra Region | Pamplona
About 40 miles from Saint Jean-Pied-de-Port, travelers find respite in the riches of Pamplona. This is Hemingway country, and the food, wine and cultural scene reflect the sort of abundance his life is known for. Pamplona is located in the Navarra wine region, one of Spain’s oldest Denominaciones de Origen (DO), established in 1939 and encompassing five distinct areas: Tierra Estella, Valdizarbe, Baja Montana, Ribera Alta and Ribera Baja. Because the region enjoys swaths of Atlantic, continental and Mediterranean climates and assorted soil composition, Navarra is fascinatingly varied. Historically populated with garnacha vineyards, wine growers here more recently included French varietals that exhibit pleasing terroir-driven scope.