In this section: Regional Food & Drink

The Hacienda lies at the heart of the Pueblos Blancos (“white villages”) region, some of the most beautiful towns and villages in Southern Spain.  These crown the mountains and hillsides throughout the region and have barely changed in centuries.  They take their name from the whitewashing of each house that occurs each year – part of the Moorish tradition that reflects that many were founded by Berber tribes during the occupation of Spain by the Moors.  Their white colour provides a dazzling contrast to the greens and ochres of their hilltop perches. 

There is a lovely driving tour around the Pueblos Blancos from the hacienda.  This follows the twisting mountain roads and takes in Grazalema, which gives its name to the National Park close to the hacienda, Zahara de le Sierra, a village that huddles on a hillside below a castle, and the small cities of Ronda and Arcos de la Frontera.

Grazalema is the “showcase” white village in the area, sitting on top of a mountain near the hacienda, clearly with defence in mind.  Its narrow streets of whitewashed houses drop steeply down the hillside.  The village thrived until the 19th century when a series of bad harvests began to drive the people away from the area to the cities.  Grazalema’s population peaked at 14,000 but is now just 2,250.  The village is surrounded by surprisingly lush vegetation as the area received higher than average rainfall.  It is also notable for the local weaving industry which today mainly produces blankets with traditional Moorish designs.

Also nearby is Arcos de la Frontera, to the west of the hacienda, another “premier league” white town.  It has a truly spectacular location, perched on top of an impressive sandstone ridge, the Penna Neuva, overlooking the Rio Guadelete on three sides.  There is an impressive view from the Plaza del Cabildo at the very top of the town, out across the broad river valley to the sun baked plains beyond.  An unusual Gothic church – Santa Maria - sits in the middle of the town along with the old castle.  The town is a fascinating mix of Moorish and Renaissance styles, a maze of steep narrow streets full of craft shops, and doted all over with churches and small squares. 

 

 

Andalucia, like other areas of Spain, has a unique cuisine and “culture of food”.    The whole process of eating is taken very seriously, whether it is tapas in a bar or a sit down meal with paella.  Relaxing and enjoying the atmosphere are just as important as the actual food consumed.

Tapas originally came from Seville and is now widespread throughout all of Andalucia.  In English we might call them snacks but the word means “cover” and is thought to refer to the use of small squares of bread to cover drinks and stop flies getting to them.  Some tapas might still be given free with a drink, but anything more elaborate than olives has to be ordered.  Tapas can be eaten with a variety of drinks and one of our favourites is with tinto de varano made with ice, red wine and fizzy water (like a very light version of sangria)

Gazpacho is an archetypal Andalucian dish – perhaps the hot climate encourages the eating of cold soups, this being just one of many cold soups in the region.  Other starters would include various grilled vegetable dishes, salads and selections of the local cured meats.

Main courses will often feature fish, one of the most unusual being Pescado a la Sal, a whole fish baked in a thick coat of salt, this being removed prior to serving.  There are also a wide range of rice dishes, and not just paellas, Andalucia being one of the first areas to cultivate rice in Europe. 

Fresh fruit is the most common dessert and Andalucia offers a wonderful choice of home-grown fruit, especially pomegranates, oranges, figs and melon

The region also produces over 20% of the world’s olive oil and this is used in virtually all the local cooking in a huge variety of ways.

Andalucia produces some of the world’s best known wines, particularly sherry, of which there is a vast variety.  Festivals celebrating the grape harvest for use in sherry occur all over the region.  But it produces few table wines, mostly these come from other parts of Spain.