Abalos to Lerma with the Duke

Lerma, Spain
March 12, 2015

We awoke and were sad to leave our base camp of Villa de Abalos.  Jose Luis was a great host and we did make plans for a return visit on our way back through the Rioja.  Next weekend we'll be back with a student from the Ben Franklin Transatlantic Foundation program.  Carlos was our first student in the program that is sponsored by the US State Department and Western European countries to have young students exchange views on governments and strive for mutual understanding.  It's a program that we are extremely impressed with and have come to know many extremely bright students who have gone on to careers in business and government around the world.  Carlos has been our host a couple of times in Madrid, showing us the highlights of the city.

Asador Casa Brigante

So after arranging our plans, we hit the road to get to Lerma.  Lerma is a typical Rioja city with a large modern base around a little hill where at the top sits it's historic center.  As you ride into town, you can see the church of  San Pedro at the top of the hill.  For us, we had directions to the Parador of Lerma, which would be the first time we have stayed in a Parador in Spain.  The Parador itself sits on a huge plaza that is open for parking.  It also is like a large bumper car area where drivers can go any way they want to get to any part they want - be careful walking around.  The sides are partitioned off for cafe dining and then there are also covered walkways around the shopping areas for hot summer days or rain.

The reason for the trip to Lerma?  It wasn't wine this time, although that is a good answer and does gain you some credit.  It was also to pair the wine with roasted suckling lamb that is done here in Lerma with expertise.  We had heard of this from another traveller who raved about the Restaurant Asador Casa Brigante.  It did not disappoint.  We arrived just in time for lunch, a short 90 minute drive from Abalos and sat down to a memorable lunch that included the suckling lamb, cooked in a large clay oven using wood from the grapevines for flavoring.  We had a regional wine with it and a mixed salad with tomatoes and onions.  The fries were also the best we have had on the trip.  They were steaming hot, with crisp edges and molten potato inside.   We sat next to the grill so we could watch the man placing the meals into the wood-fired oven and move the clay pots around to cook and crisp the food as it was prepared.  Back-to-Front and Side-to-Side the food was being moved around like a square dance and the cook was the caller.

Interior Courtyard of Lerma Parador

Lerma Parador 

We checked into our room in Parador and were really excited to see our room.  The Ducal Palace is one whole side of the huge square and was getting a new slate roof installed while we were there.  We upgraded for the night and the room was extremely large with a king bed and plenty of space in the bathroom.  It had two balconies that looked out behind the building and the other down onto the river and the fields beyond.  The ceilings had to be at least 20 feet high with window dressings that looked like stage curtains.  Extremely well appointed and comfortable.   We continued our walking around town to the modern areas and then through the maze of the old city upon the hills.

We ended the day with a cracker crust pizza and some local wines at a quiet spot on the plaza where the locals were popping in and out shouting hello to each other as they came and went.  We decided an early night (for Spain) at 10:00 was good for us to get back and plan for our trip the next day to Portugal to Penafiel.  Why there?  Our Air B&B showed us Penafiel in Portugal by our mistake and we loved the cute house that was an option to stay in the town.  We decided a green wine would be different to try, and Cathy and I have not been to Portugal together.  She had been there to celebrate her grandmother's 80th birthday in 1993.  The last time I was in Portugal was after my semester at school in Valencia in May of 1986, 29 years ago.

Church of San Pedro