What does a monastery eat? That is a question that visitors rarely ask, but at Yuso, in the valley of San Millán de la Cogolla, the answer lies in the kitchen garden, the huerta, that stretches beside the walls. The monastery, rebuilt from the sixteenth century, is a large, plain-faced building of stone and brick, run today by Augustinian Recollects, and it was listed as a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 1997 together with the older monastery of Suso above. The garden is a reminder that monasteries were also farms, and that the monks' discipline included hoeing and watering as much as chanting.
La Rioja is the vegetable garden of Spain in a way that wine fans sometimes forget. The fertile valley of the Ebro and its tributaries produces asparagus, artichokes, peppers, borage and green beans, and a famous dish called menestra de verduras, a mixed vegetable stew, is a source of regional pride. The Najerilla river waters the soil of this side valley, and its terraces carry fruit trees, vines and vegetables. In spring and early summer the kitchen gardens of the villages are neat rectangles of green, and many families still grow their own food.
The valley is a delightful place to ride, because the roads are quiet and the scenery is varied. From Nájera, on the Camino de Santiago, you follow the river upstream through vineyards, then climb gently to San Millán, passing small villages with stone churches. Beyond it the road continues toward the Sierra de la Demanda, where beech and oak forests clothe the slopes and the air is cooler. Surfaces are good, bends are moderate, and the best seasons are May and October.
The village itself has only about three hundred people, and fuel is in Santo Domingo de la Calzada, fifteen kilometres away, or in Nájera, a bit farther. Visits to the monastery are by guided tour, and there is a limit to numbers, so book ahead if you can. A lunch in the village is likely to include vegetables, lamb or chorizo, and a glass of the local red. Winters can be cold and foggy, so check the weather before you go.