943 55 22 42
943 55 22 42
At the Gurutzeta Cider House we open the doors today to, even if it is in a special way, make txotx.
2020 comes to an end with a question: Will there be txotx?
At the end of September we usually start to collect and crush the apple. On November 2 we finished the process
As the apple harvest season arrives, we analyze the fruit in the apple trees
HISTORY:
Gurutzeta Cider House, located in the Ergobia neighborhood of Astigarraga, is a family-run business that has been dedicated to making cider since the end of the 19th century.
In 1979 Jose Goñi Urreaga began modernizing the cider house, installing new presses, building a new bodega and automating the work.
In 1989, José Goñi's son, José Angel Goñi, took over the family business and started the process of professionalizing it.
He added stainless steel barrels, new cooling techniques to control the fermentation process and he began to adopt new techniques to market our cider.
Our cider can be defined as a natural product that is produced with modern technologies used to serve tradition.
OUR CIDER:
Our cider comes in 750ml 'cider-style' bottles, as pictured, and with a natural cork.
Our benchmark product is GURUTZETA. It should be served cool but never cold, at temperatures around 10-12ºC (50-53.5ºF). It should be poured from a height of about 20-30 cm (8-12 in) into a tall and wide glass made of fine crystal. This sets off the "txinparta", where the carbonated bubbles burst and quickly disappear. The glass should be filled until it measures 3 fingers and the cider should be drunk right away.
Puede ver en este video el proceso de elaboración artesanal de la sidra.
Galería de imágenes de la producción. Pulse para ampliar las fotos
Trucks loaded with apples arrive at Gurutzeta from the beginning of October to the middle of November.
Apples are washed and sorted as they head towards the crushing machine.
Once the apples are crushed, they are pumped to a pneumatic press and the must (juice) is extracted. This process takes approximately 5 hours.
The liquid that is the result of the pressing process is called must, or apple juice. It is very sweet and is the basis of quality cider.
Once the must is extracted, it is pumped into cooling tanks, which facilitates maturation and ensures that fermentation occurs uniformly.
After settling, the must is clean and ready to ferment.
The must is always kept at the same temperature, so fermentation takes place in the same conditions all throughout the apple season. The fermentation process takes approximately 20 days.
After fermentation and the transfers have taken place, the cider will rest in barrels until it is bottled. Once the cider is bottled, it is ready to sell.
ENTREGA GRATIS a partir de 50 euros en Donostialdea (Astigarraga, Hernani, Donosti, Lasarte, Andoain, Urnieta, Usurbil, Lezo, Oiartzun, Rentería y Pasajes)
Put the following address into your mobile telephone or GPS
Camino Oialume, 63, Astigarraga, Guipúzcoa 20115
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If you have smartphone and a QR code reader, scan the image to download the Google map directly to your device.
It's easy to get to us. If you need to contact us, we're happy to hear from you. Txotx!!!
During the TXOTX season (from January 17th to April 30th, we are open from 13.30-15 (kitchen close at 15, the cider house is open until 17) for lunch and from 20-22 (kitchen close at 22, the cider house is open until 24) for dinner. We are closed Mondays midday, Sundays and holidays. The rest of the year, the celler is open for the purchase of cider in bottles, for visits, experiences and groups.
Fill in the form below to make a reservation. NOTE: This does NOT mean that the reservation is guaranteed. We will confirm your reservation as quickly as possible.
OTHER WAYS TO ENJOY THE TXOTX RITUAL
We offer other ways for you to enjoy the TXOTX experience, allowing you to gain in-depth knowledge of each of the elements involved (cider, traditional dishes, Idiazabal cheese). We open our house to you, and as our special guest you’ll get to experience it from the inside and help us prepare the TXOTX that you’ll be enjoying afterwards, making you part of the Gurutzeta cider house family.
Cider tasting and Txotx with traditional cider house dishes
Learn to prepare cider house steak and enjoy the Txotx experience
Experience the Txotx the Basque "Kuadrilla" way
Arrauntxotx
Idiazabal cheese and Txotx
Montaña, queso y sidra
Pintxo making at the cider house (outside the Txotx season)
Proximamente
Our cider maker joins us as we talk about what cider is, how it’s made, and how it’s evolved throughout history. We’ll also guide you through a cider tasting and give you an insider’s tour of the facilities and cider making process. Afterwards, as our special guests, you’ll enjoy the TXOTX and its traditional dishes.
LEARN:
EXPERIENCE:
ENJOY:
+INFO:
gurutzeta@gurutzeta.com+34 943 55 22 42
You’ll learn how to prepare a real Basque steak—the txuleta—with the cider house’s master griller. We’ll show you the characteristic features of quality beef, how to cut the meat into bone-in rib eye steaks and how to prepare them on the grill, so that later you will be able to recreate the process on your own barbeque like the experts do. We’ll show you the two main techniques: with salt and without salt.
We’ll also do a cider tasting in our bodega with the cider maker, so you can learn to the distinctive features of the cider that comes from the different kupelas (barrels).
Then, as our special guests, you will enjoy the TXOTX and the traditional menu, which includes the txuleta that you helped to prepare.
LEARN:
EXPERIENCE
DISFRUTAR:
+INFO:
gurutzeta@gurutzeta.com+34 943 55 22 42
The TXOTX ritual is special, and we help you experience and enjoy it the same way the locals do, which is with their ‘kuadrilla’, or group of close friends. A local will accompany you throughout the lunch or dinner, explaining everything related to the TXOTX ritual: how it started, the traditional dishes, the richness of cider, the Basque language, and our Basque traditions. Take advantage of your Basque friend and ask whatever you’d like to know about our country and customs.
Before the TXOTX itself, you’ll visit the cider house and do a cider tasting. The idea is to enjoy the TXOTX ritual like an insider, knowing the ins and outs and sharing in our Basque tradition, which we hope will remain authentic.
LEARN:
EXPERIENCE:
ENJOY:
Before enjoying the traditional cider house meal (the TXOTX), why not go out in a trainera, a type of rowboat used by Basque whalers.
We’ll go rowing in La Concha Bay or along the Urumea river, routes that were formerly used to transport cider.
The coxswain will teach you to row the trainera and you will also learn about the history of the boats, whale hunting and whatever else you’d like to know about this traditional Basque sport of rowing. We’ll row and then we’ll stop to rest and take in the beautiful landscape surrounding La Concha Bay or the Urumea river. As you rest in the boat, we’ll pour you some cider to help you regain your strength.
Afterwards, you’ll be welcomed to the cider house by the cider maker as our special guests. There will be a cider tasting in the bodega, where you’ll learn the distinctive features of the cider that comes from the different kupelas (barrels).
At this point you’ll be ready to dive into the TXOTX ritual and fully enjoy the cider and traditional dishes.
You have the option of having a cider house guide join your group during the TXOTX (look at EXPERIENCE THE TXOTX THE BASQUE ‘KUADRILLA’ WAY).
LEARN:
EXPERIENCE:
ENJOY:
We will visit an authentic, family-run cheese maker that produces organic Idiazabal cheese using traditional methods. We’ll talk with the shepherd and learn his story. He’ll show us the facilities and we’ll see how the sheep are milked—you can even milk them yourself if you’d like. At the end of the tour, we’ll taste various cheeses, accompanied by the best local cider. (This experience is only available before dinner seatings at the cider house).
LEARN:
EXPERIENCE:
ENJOY:
Te llevaremos hasta el corazón del País Vasco, para que disfrutes de en un escenario totalmente natural y sientas la verdadera esencia de nuestra tierra.
Selecciona la actividad de la que deseas disfrutar:
“Las actividad seleccionada será siempre adaptada para ti y dispondrás de la ayuda de un instructor profesional o un guía para que puedas disfrutar al máximo”.
Visitaremos una autentica quesería familiar, donde elaboran queso de forma tradicional. Charlaremos con el pastor, conoceremos su historia, nos mostrara las instalaciones, veremos cómo las ordeñan y si te animas incluso podrás ordeñarlas. Y para terminar disfrutaremos de una degustación de diferentes quesos en compañía de la mejor sidra local.
Vive el auténtico rito del “TXOTX” y disfruta de la comida tradicional en nuestra sidrería Gurutzeta. Os recibirá el sidrero para realizar una visita a la sidrería, seguida de una cata en la bodega. Y ya solo os quedará sumergiros en el “TXOTX” y disfrutar de la sidra y los platos tradicionales de sidrería. Nuestra idea es que disfrutéis el “TXOTX” desde dentro, entendiéndolo, participando con los vascos de una tradición que deseamos siga manteniéndose auténtica.
CONOCER:
EXPERIMENTAR:
DISFRUTAR:
Gurutzeta opens its doors to you and your group, inviting you to join in a contest to make three typical pintxos and taste cider from different kupelas. The cider maker will welcome you and take you on a tour of the cider house, after which there will be a cider tasting in the bodega. Afterwards, under the guidance of a local chef, you will be divided into groups. Each group will work at different tables, and each table will focus on making a particular pintxo. At each table you will find all the ingredients, but no instructions—you get to experiment and create the pintxo using your own imagination! Once we’ve made our pintxos, we’ll have a tasting and give prizes to the best creations.
LEARN:
EXPERIENCE:
ENJOY:
More information
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