To Ponte Navea, in Trives (Ourense)
I am going to start my journey in a rural house, the Casa Grande de Cristosende, in To Teixeira . I will do it, specifically, in a room, the one that has a balcony that opens to the Sil river canyon . And I will do it because the house is one of the interesting accommodations in the area and because the views deserve it. But I do, above all, because in that room my grandfather was born 101 years ago . And maybe that helps explain the fascination I've always felt for this area.
My grandfather left the village at the age of 11 to go to boarding school and the house has not belonged to the family for decades, but Cristosende is still a perfect base camp to move around that place in the world where the provinces of Lugo and Ourense look at each other face to face from the opposite banks of the river, where the Ribeira Sacra becomes more rugged and little by little it enters the forests and the highest mountains of Galicia.
The charm of the interior of Galicia condensed in one place
To one side, from the house, the town hall of Sil stop , full of viewpoints that take your breath away. Note: Cabezoás, Balcóns de Madrid, Vilouxe, A Cividá … Unforgettable wineries like Ronsel do Sil , with its garden of native grape varieties on the banks of the river, and walks such as the route of the footbridges of the Mao river.
On the other side the wild lands of Caldelas and Trives , the great unknowns. It was anxo fernandez which everyone knows as Anxo Trives , which makes it clear how hooked he is to his region, who inoculated me with addiction to this territory.
I know this cook, third generation along with his sister at the head of the Hostel Restaurant La Viuda , in the heart of Poor of Trives , a few years ago. We have worked together on a few projects and always, whether we were in a press presentation, in a course or on a journalist's visit, he ends up talking about unknown corners that he knows like few others.
The origins of La Viuda Hostel Restaurant
So one day while we were drinking a portion of the spectacular bacon that they cure at home , I suggested that he act as a guide for the region. That he take me to places, but above all that he introduce me to people, that he let me try products, to show me in a practical way why the Massif Central is so special.
And he did damn if he did . That night we dined at Agenor House, at the foot of the mountain station of Manzaneda , a place that resists labels and is not easy to explain: an interior lined with wood, but lined to a level that one does not imagine until one enters there; an immovable menu for decades -cold meats from the area, meat with chillies and stewed trout- a charming couple at the front and a memory of those that stay with you for a long time.
Not far away is the Manzaneda village , small but full of surprises. Anxo tells me that it is one of the towns in the region that best preserves its medieval trace . And, in fact, when you wander aimlessly you come across a gate in the old wall, houses with coats of arms and to the old jail building.
A stone's throw from the village, along a signposted path, you reach the Souto de Rozabales , a century-old chestnut forest in the middle of which is the Castiñeiro de Pumbariño , surely the largest chestnut tree in Galicia . With its 14 meters in diameter and its at least five centuries of history, it is, in a way, the grandfather of the region.
And there, next door, the perfect place to spend the night. The Pazo da Pena is one of the most spectacular rural accommodations in the Northwest. this mansion, built in the 16th century on a large rock (A Pena) has some rooms where you want to stay for a while, like the one called To Trasfega, at the top of the Torreón.
A mansion built in the 16th century
But it is that, in addition to charming rooms, O Pazo da Pena houses countless corners in which to get lost: the library, the solaina, the catacombs, the cave and even one ethnographic exhibition on the old looms, a traditional carpentry or a cellar. I tell no more. You have to come up here and let it be Carla, the owner , who will explain it to you and guide you. You won't want to leave.
Anxo tells us that we cannot leave the area without trying the bica , that cake that is not really a cake and that is pure dairy aroma . And he tells us about the cordial rivalry between Trives and Castro Caldelas about its origin.
Since we are not ones to take sides lightly, we go to the Caneda bakery, in Pobra de Trives , to try the bica that Sayoa and her family make traditional . fantastic. And then we go to Castro Caldelas, just 15 minutes away, to go up to O'Forno , on the steep Rua do Toural , where they have been preparing this sweet for decades. Very good too. I take one from each of these workshops. Why choose if we can enjoy both?
And since I'm here, I go down to the center and go down the Rúa Grande to the castle , which has been one of the best viewpoints to control the region for centuries and which is still impressive today when you walk through its towers.
Bica bakery Caneda
A stone's throw from the town, entering the canyon again, is Adega Vella, a winery where Jorge produces quality wines in one of those places where the vineyard marks the landscape, spreading out on terraces from the heights to the riverbank. We could keep going down, cross the river by the doade's bridge and continue exploring the Lugo shore, which is also spectacular.
Although that is for another day. This time we go back, because there is still a lot of Massif Central to explore. Back to Trives, in San Xoan de Rio , we cross the largest oak forest in Galicia. Down there somewhere there is a medieval bridge and the remains of what appears to have been a Roman temple.
Anxo prepares me a chestnut stew , a dish that he created inspired by the tradition of the area and that he can make, he tells me, thanks to Amarelante, a small local project that revolves around this product -the dried fruit, its flour, sweets. He accompanies him with a alcouce , a wine that is produced next door, in the Chao do Couso winery , and who has Xiana behind her, another of those young women, like the people behind yellowing , who believe that the area has a lot to offer and that the aging and depopulation of rural areas are combated with enthusiasm, with ideas and by putting products like this great wine on the market.
Castro Caldelas
We follow the route, this time going down towards the bibei river , which separates the lands of the appellations of origin of Ribeira Sacra and Valdeorras . The limit point has been marked, for 2,000 years, by a Roman bridge: the Ponte Bibei . On the way here the road snakes and the views are breathtaking. Stand at this point and cross the bridge on foot, as the Roman legions did in their day , has something symbolic. Only the noise of the river is heard.
Around, dotting the slopes, are some of the mythical names of wine in Galicia in recent years: Daterra Viticulturists, Dominio do Bibei , something beyond the new Viña Costeira winery or, if we go down towards Valdeorras, Quinta da Peza, Rafael Palacios, Joaquín Rebolledo, José Arístegui or Alán de Val with its views over the valley.
We have to decide which route to follow, but first we stop at Larouco , one of the smallest municipalities in Galicia and which, however, has at least two reasons that make stopping here almost an obligation: the first is its ancient cave cellars , a rarity carved into the rock of the slate slopes that is worth visiting if you have the chance.
Ponte Bibei
The other reason is Nacho, the person behind La Perdida , one of those cult wineries that wine lovers speak of with admiration and respect. The wines justify it, but coming here and letting Nacho count them gives them another dimension. Because wine is drunk, but here people also talk and live , something that after visiting this unclassifiable winegrower becomes very clear.
We finally decided to continue into the mountains, leaving the valley behind. So we turned south and headed to the Terras do Bolo . The first stop is the small sanctuary town of As Ermidas , built around the impressive baroque church which, nestled halfway up the hillside between the olive and cypress trees that the microclimate of the valley allows to grow, has a strange air, as if from another time and another place.
We continue. to the left of the road the lands of A Veiga, the mountain capital, at the foot of Trevinca, the roof of Galicia . For a few years this small town has been recovering the cultivation of the faba wolf , a large, buttery bean.
We had a tapa of beans at the bar Penatrevinca -you have to know what we are talking about- and we continue on our way. On the way I see a group of roe deer in a meadow , just 50 meters from the road.
Sanctuary village of As Ermidas
We want to get to eat Viana do Bolo , where the restaurant to our house It offers daily menus with meats from the area and in which, on the coldest days, which are quite a few, starting with a plate of steaming broth is always a good option. First we want to go to the castle and stop at Vizcaya Prieto , one of those usual ovens, for some of that bread that has the aroma of another era.
And maybe get another bica, which is also being prepared here. or go down to Vilarino de Conso and order a mononico, a sweet that they only make here and that it is a succession of layers of puff pastry, dulce de leche, meringue and perdition. But they only have it to order. Decided: I ask for tomorrow and I'll stay one more night.
Luckily here next to it Or Trancallo , a recently restored rural house, where Nathalie, the owner , she offers with breakfast the jams that she makes herself and nuts from the tree that is at the back of the farm.
This way we can go down to Verín in the morning, to taste its famous Torta do Cigarron , and to eat at Regueiro da Cova . Or maybe we'll go back and I'll get to know the dry land of Pena Folenche, or take a route through the peaks of apple head.
Maybe I'll get to know the monasteries of Montederramo or Sobrado . I'm going to have to stay one more night though. I better call Pazo de Barberiron . And so, the next day...
A Nosa Casa in Viana do Bolo