Text and photos by Tor Eigeland

A distinctly familiar, agreeable waft blew into my car as I slowed down from superhighway speed and opened my car windows at the exit for Cenicero, Elciego, and Laguardia in the internationally famous Rioja wine district in northern Spain.

Although there was no winery in sight, the air was distinctly scented with the smell of fermenting grapes left on the vine and on the ground, this being the end of the harvest season.

The road at Cenicero passes the deceivingly small and discrete presence of a huge wine-maker, the Marqués de Cáceres which, as a result of employing the very latest methods in redesigned bodegas as well as amazingly effective marketing techniques, sells more wine in the Americas than any other Spanish winemaker and is omni-present in serious and even not-so-serious wine shops all over the world.

Below ground in its new facilities are gigantic, temperature-controlled, stainless-steel containers fermenting and preparing wine, 40,000 oak barrels of ageing red wine and ten million bottles are stocked for further ageing.

The Rioja Alta region ends right here and we head north towards Elciego and Laguardia, a few minutes' drive away into the Rioja Alavesa. Other than seeing some of the new and revolutionary bodega architecture in the region the main reasons for my visit was to see superstar architect Frank Gehry's new hotel built for Marqués de Riscal winery: The Hotel Marqués de Riscal, Luxury Collection.

The place is not hard to find! Rounding a curve, suddenly a strangely shaped spaceship rises out of a world of vineyards and bodegas, glistening pink, gold and silver in amazing waves of coloured titanium.

"A bunch of squashed tin cans", "metal garbage dump" were comments I had heard and read about this building. All wrong I decided. "Startling at first, yes, but also beautiful, original, a monument to the new Rioja that is changing the region," were thoughts that came to mind, remembering the effect of Gehry's Guggenheim Museum on Bilbao which is located not very far from here.

Entering the hotel is like walking into another world. Here reigns calm and tall ceilings which soar to six metres in the lobby, bright, lots of space, vivid colours and some of the best, intelligent, cheerful and thoughtful service I have encountered in a lifetime of travel, personified by their public relations manager, Vanessa Ferrer.

Right next to the lobby, up a few stairs, Vanessa showed me what they too solemnly called a 'cathedral of wine', a bright and cheerful wine-bar, instantly my favourite spot in the hotel. The tall walls are covered with wine racks from bottom to top, storing thousands of bottles of wine. Lit from below, a curved onyx bar shapes the room.

On the top floor is an attractive penthouse lounge with a library of some 1,000 books, a copper fireplace and a terrace with views in several directions. Naturally, there is a fine restaurant and a prestigious Caudalie vinotherapy spa.

Prices?

"They range from 325 euros (about $460) to 1,550 euros for the Gehry Suite," says Vanessa Ferrer.

She stresses: "This is per room, not per person, and breakfast is included."

Next to the hotel are 19th-century red-roofed buildings and below ground exists another modern world, that of the Herederos del Marqués de Riscal winery. Some 3.8 million bottles are stored underground here in addition to millions of litres in temperature-controlled stainless steel containers.

Other winemakers in the area have also moved spectacularly into the 21st century. A few kilometres away, just outside the ancient wine-producing town of Laguardia, Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava designed the Bodegas Ysios in a totally different but extremely eye-catching style.

Seen from a distance, straight on, the building looks blurred; out-of-focus, like an optical trick. The "trick" is the undulating roof that mimics a row of barrels. Seen from the side it resembles an Oriental pagoda.

A pagoda dedicated to the tempranillo grape. Every detail of the bodega, exterior as well as interior, was supervised by Calatrava. The result is one of harmonious, spacious beauty, inside and out. Even the carefully organised stored oak barrels are a sight of beauty.

Ysios is part of the Domecq Bodegas ¿ I'm tempted to say the Domecq Empire. Another part of that empire is the Juan Alcorta Bodegas a few kilometres away at Logroño. Replacing the well-known old Campo Viejo bodegas, here is another model of elegant, attractive and efficient rational design. The architect, Ignacio Quemada Sáenz-Badillas, is a native of the Rioja and this bodega was his first big project.

Not only is the design impressive. The capacity is enormous. Let it only be said that here, underground, are 327 stainless steel tanks with a total capacity of more than 30 million litres. The tanks are on different levels and the wine is gently moved by gravity. Then there are 70,000 oak casks for ageing and I wouldn't care to try to count the bottles!

Varied and scenic, the Rioja region fortunately so far has escaped being overrun by tourists. Hotels and inns are excellent and in every price range as are the restaurants and bars of the region. And for lovers of tapas (usually called pintxos around here) like me there is no need at all to go to any restaurant. Practically every bar has them and happy crowds move from one bar to another, tasting and sipping.

The natives are very friendly and love to talk, especially if you can drum up a little bit of Spanish. You would probably find that quite a large number of the people in these bars display some of the glow of good red wine on their faces and noses.

For wine lovers interested in the visiting this region rich in culture and the good things in life, contact the nearest Spanish tourism office, or simply go to Google and write "Rioja wine tours".

Apparently this will be the wine auction of the new century decade in Spain and it is definitely for the well-heeled, people with bottomless pockets.

Also for the truly well-heeled is the Marqués de Riscal winery, the Gehry-designed Marqués de Riscal Hotel and Christie's the auctioneers, are hosting a weekend of extraordinary epicurean decadence which starts Friday, October 24 and culminates on Sunday, October 26 with a charity auction of multiple vintages of Marqués de Riscal wines.

The featured Riscal Superlot includes one bottle of every available vintage dating back to 1861, released directly to the buyer from the historic wine library of the Marqués de Riscal. This marks the world's largest vertical wine collection ever released by a winery it is claimed. Estimated proceeds ranging between 80,000 euros and 130,000 euros will be donated to charity.

As for me, I'll be just up the road in a nice little village bar having a glass of full-bodied vino tinto and some rich, tasty pintxos.

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Information regarding the Marqués de Riscal Hotel and auction:

http://www.luxurycollectionpromotions.com/events/

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If you have any comments or feedback, Tor Eigeland can be contacted at tor.eigelandwanadoo.fr