Getaway to Priorat: The fruits of the earth

The villages in the Costa Daurada area include five that are internationally recognised for their Designation of Origin (DO) wines, the vineyards and bodegas of two of which, Montsant and Priorat, are included in today’s visit. Priorat is in fact the only place in Catalonia that bears the label DOQ (Qualified DO), and you can’t visit Priorat without going to one of its many bodegas, where you'll learn about the process of making these excellent wines. Head to the bodega of your choice – you'll be treated like royalty at any of them – and they'll show you around the spaces where the fruit of the grape from the vine ages, explaining the wine-making process, and some will give you a tour of the vineyards, and of course you'll get a wine tasting as well.

The Priorat region has garnered quite the reputation for its wine in recent years. But there's another liquid produced here that's also top-notch and is exported near and far: we're talking, of course, about olive oil. This morning we'll show you around a cooperative in Bisbal de Falset, which is the area's biggest company.

You'll find the Cooperativa de la Bisbal de Falset in a mill that dates back to 1951, but where nowadays the olives are pressed with modern machinery that makes it easier and also gets the best-quality oil from the fruit. During your visit you'll see how olive oil is made, in this case from arbequina olives, and you'll sample the extra virgin olive oile that the cooperative produces.

What better way to help your digestion than to go for a walk among the olive trees in the surroundings of Bisbal de Falset. In fact, there's a route called Olivos Sobre Rocas, sponsored by the previously mentioned Cooperative de la Bisbal de Falset, which is fairly easy to do even if you're not used to walking or hiking much. During the flat, three-kilometre walk, you'll get to discover these olive trees that give us oil of such extraordinary quality.

And while you're at it, you can dedicate the whole day to this liquid gold at the Olive Oil and Productive Economies of Montsant Study Centre, in Margalef. Here you can learn about the different parts of the process of producing oil and, among other highlights, you'll see a working olive washer.

The last morning of this visit is also the most exciting, beginning with more of Montsant, and a trip to one of the hermitages at the foot of the spectacular mountain range, Sant Joan de Codolar, three kilometres from Cornudella de Montsant. The hermitage was built by Carthusian monks at the end of the 15th century, and today is still home to one resident, who's more than happy to open her doors to visitors. The name Codolar comes from the large rocks that surround the site.

And so from one unique spot to another. Around a few bends in the road you'll reach the picturesque village of Siurana. You can wander round on your own to take in the pretty cobbled streets, old houses and amazing views over the Siurana reservoir. Or, if you're visiting over the second weekend of any month, you can choose to take a theatrical tour on which you can learn plenty of facts about the magic of this clifftop village, in a fun tour of many fascinating cultural attractions such as the Romanesque Santa María church and the remains of the Moorish castle.

As you're so close, it would be a shame to miss out on a trip to the Escaladei Carthusian monastery, possibly the area’s most significant monument. The monastery is today mostly in ruins, but it's still worth a visit to see the pure size of the site, and the beauty of its setting against the Montsant mountain range. The monastery is also of historic importance: not only were the Carthusian monks from Provence charged with repopulating the whole land, they also introduced viticulture to the area. The name Priorat, in fact, comes from the Prior of Escaladei. The monastery was built in the 12th century and was the first Carthusian monastery on the Iberian Peninsula. Some of its interior, including a cell, one of the three cloisters, and the refectory, has been rebuilt in recent years in the original style, so visitors can see how the monks would have lived.