Wine museum

The Wine Museum is part of the property  of what has been called the House of Vine and Wine. It is located in a warehouse dating from 1918, which was renovated in two phases. The facade of the building is a unique example of modernist industrial architecture in the area. The site has 1200 square meters built as well as an annexed area for future expansion.

The House of Vine and Wine has the following entities:

• The Council of the Designation of Origin of Cariñena.
• Library dedicated to the culture of wine, which will be the seed of future documentation center on the same subject.
• Tasting Room, located at the rear of the building and with capacity for up to twenty people, is the result of the expansion undertaken in 2004.
• Enoteca: is located in the cellar of the building. It has old winery vats, which have been restored so different wineries in the Cariñena “Denominación de Origen”, can store their own bottle collections.
• The Wine Museum, was built in the second phase. The museum, initially conceived as a meeting place for producers and visitors, has become a tourist attraction in the area, expanding the supply of cultural tourism in the area, among which are important cultural heritage sites, such as the Mudéjar churches recently declared as World Heritage Site by UNESCO, or Goya’s frescoes in the hermitage of la Virgen de la Fuente, an example of his early work.

The museum is conceived as a promotional element of Cariñena wine, with an emphasis on the peculiarities of the region in the exhibition.

In addition, the center introduces the culture of wine to non-experts, showing the complexity of the process, which should contribute to enhance the appreciation of wine.

Another important aim is to offer a homage to the people of the area, who for centuries have been devoted to the wine industry, promoting the work of winemakers and laborers in order to acknowledge their value.

The exhibition begins with the area we call “The people of Cariñena,” an area that has special importance, and can be seen from most parts of the museum.

The theme of the museum can be appreciated in the vats of the former warehouse, reused as exhibit displays on the ground, which explain the characteristics of the area and the wines. There is also historical material from the producers of the area, collected through hard work of industrial archeology.
The museum conducts a large number of activities aimed at promoting the wine from Cariñena, with lectures, courses and training.

Given the importance as a cultural entity in the area, there are also temporary exhibitions to give priority to the educational aspect and the promotion of young artists in the area, complementing these with courses in history, art and other disciplines of the humanities. Along this line, in recent years there has been collaboration with the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature at the University of Zaragoza with the Research Award “The culture of wine.”