Spain: the country with a tipple for every occasion

EARLY FORTIFICATION

Elegant, varied, surprising; words that could all describe both the city of Jerez, and its famous export, sherry. Often dismissed as old-fashioned by anyone ordering a drink in England, sherry is the drink of choice of Spaniards as they head home from work, stopping off for a quick drink. A small glass of fino - the driest version - or manzanilla - dry but slightly nutty in flavour - is an ideal accompaniment for tapas, and there are plenty of places to find a good selection. One of the best is Juanito's at Pescaderia Vieja 8-10 (00 34 956 33 48 38), where a portion of artichokes, cooked with garlic and sherry and served hot, is an ideal accompaniment to un vino. This will get you a glass of sherry; if you want a standard red or white wine, you will need to stipulate blanco - white - or tinto - red.

Related articles

• Five Best: Andalusian paradores
• Montserrat: a land of visions, hermits and serious hikers
• San Sebastian: Basque in its glory
• The great little railways of Spain
• The Traveller's Guide To: Going native in Spain
• Trail Of The Unexpected: Holy Week in Seville

There is plenty to see in Jerez before the bars open, too: an impressive baroque cathedral, built on the site of a mosque, opposite the 12th-century Moorish fortress, or Alcazar; and a historic district with plenty of churches and museums. But the main reason to visit the city is for the sherry. Most of the main producers have their headquarters, or bodegas, in the centre, and many are happy to welcome visitors. The oldest is Pedro Domecq at Calle San Ildefonso 3 (00 34 956 15 15 00; www.domecq.es). Gonzalez Byass - maker of Tio Pepe - is the largest, and has a dome designed by Gustave Eiffel; the bodega is on Calle Manuel Maria Gonzalez (00 34 956 35 70 16; www.gonzalezbyass.es) and visitors are taken through the cellars by train. Harveys, at Calle Pintor Munoz Cebrian (00 34 956 346 004) is the home of Bristol Cream. All of these bodegas offer tours and tastings, and some serve tapas along with a glass of sherry.

A MAIN ATTRACTION

The heart of Spain's wine industry - and the centrepiece of any decent Spanish wine list - is the Rioja region, an area of northern Spain on either side of the Ebro river. The name comes from the Rio Oja, a tributary that runs south from the Ebro through Ezcaray and beyond. The region first established itself because of its location on one of the pilgrims' routes to Santiago de Compostela; villages like Najera and Santo Domingo de la Calzada grew up along the route, and their elaborate churches, which would once have sheltered pilgrims, are a highlight. The capital of the Rioja is Logrono, with a Moorish tower and a well-preserved old quarter, which is reached through a stone archway through which medieval pilgrims used to pass on their way into the city. There are several wineries just outside Logrono, but there is no need to leave town to sample the wine; there are plenty of tapas bars along Calle Laurel, just south of the Plaza de San Agustin, where they will be only too happy to let you try a glass or two.

Grapes have been grown in the Rioja since the Middle Ages, but it really developed as a wine region in the late 19th century, when the vineyards of Bordeaux had been devastated by the phylloxera virus and supplies of wine had to be found elsewhere. Most of the wine production is centred around Haro, a small town 30km north-west of the regional capital, where most of the big wine producers are based. Bodegas Berceo, at Cuevas 32 (00 34 941 31 07 44) is one of several that offer tours. There is also an interesting small Wine Museum, which gives a comprehensive explanation of the cultivation methods and production processes used in the Rioja region. The museum is on Avenida Breton de los Herreros 4 (00 34 941 310 547) and opens daily.

SOMETHING SMOOTH AND SWEET

For a proper finish to the evening, a hardened drinker will need to head back to Andalusia. Jerez is an option: brandy, a by-product of sherry production, is available from most sherry houses, and there is lively entertainment in flamenco clubs, like the Pena Tio Jose de Paula, around the Plaza de Santiago. But for a sweeter alternative, Malaga is a better destination. This underrated city has attractions that include the ruins of a Roman theatre and the new Picasso museum. In wine list terms, Malaga is a delicious sweet wine that makes a perfect end to a meal, in one of the excellent restaurants in the city like the upmarket Café de Paris at Calle Velez Malaga 8 (00 34 952 22 50 43), or El Chinitas at Calle Moreno Monroy 4 (00 34 952 21 09 72).

There is plenty going on in Malaga late into the night, and many of the liveliest bars are clustered around Plaza de Uncibay. An alternative is to buy a bottle of Malaga and drink it in the Plaza de la Merced, where many people like to spend the early hours chatting and playing guitars.

STOP FOR A DRINK

There are plenty of less well-known Spanish towns that are renowned locally - or even internationally - for their wines and which are worth a stop.

San Sadurní de Noya

This small town, slightly inland between Barcelona and Tarragona, is in the heart of the Penedes region of Catalonia, and is the centre of production for Spain's sparkling Cava wines, which have been made in the town for over 100 years. There are several wineries to visit, including Codorniu, on Avenida Jaume Codorniu (00 34 938 18 32 32), and the largest of the sparkling producers, Freixenet.

Bolullos del Condado

Virtually unknown outside the Andalucian province of Huelva, the wines of El Condado - the region that encompasses a number of small towns like Almonte and Rociana del Condado - are white and extremely drinkable. The centre of the region is the small town of Bolullos del Condado, a pleasant little place whose main street is lined with bars and cafes. These offer plates of locally-caught prawns or Andalusian hams to accompany the local wines which are served by the glass or the bottle; look out for names like Privilegio del Condado.