Tuesday, 15 April 2025
The space at the Enological Station managed by the Reus Promoció Agency, known as the Vermouth and Wine Space, is being refurbished and relaunched, taking advantage of Holy Week and the increase in the number of visitors to the city.
Noemí Llauradó, Councillor for City Projection, explained that “the main aim of this space is to highlight the connection between the city of Reus and vermouth, and to emphasise the heritage value of the Enological Station and the importance of the work it has carried out over time”.
The Vermouth and Wine Space is one of the gateways for tourists to the city, and one of its purposes is also to guide visitors towards the food and wine tourism offer they can find in Reus and the surrounding area, positioning itself as a first stop for discovering the different wine territories with nearby Designations of Origin.
Improvement and updating of the exhibition space
A more contemporary approach has been taken to the resources used in the building’s decoration. A new interpretation of the graphic trencadís (broken-tile mosaic) provides a common thread for the graphic design of the panels, combined with the production materials and the items on display. Only the general history panels use photographs to complement the text. The aim is to create a contemporary image that at the same time complements the space and the product on display. The new panels take us back to the late 1800s and tell the story of the Modernista complex and the origins of vermouth, as well as the history of winemaking in Reus at that time.
The aim of the refurbishment of the exhibition display is to create an elegant and much more orderly space, where visitors feel comfortable and, at the same time, the Vermouth brands and the product as a whole are given the prominent place they deserve while blending harmoniously into the building.
This is a multipurpose space located on the ground floor of the central building of the Reus Enological Station, which opened in April 2019 with the aim of contributing to the following areas:
- Integrating Reus’s tourism offer with the region’s wine tourism, guiding and informing visitors, especially those interested in wine tourism, and inviting them to discover the excellence of Vermut de Reus and the wines of the area.
- Highlighting the Enological Station and its heritage value, linking it to the story of “Reus, Paris, London”, and integrating a visit to it into the Modernisme Route and the Vermouth Route.
- Enhancing the value of gastronomic products by promoting awareness of them and their commercialisation, becoming a showcase for the “Vermut de Reus” brand and a space for tasting products, especially Reus PDO hazelnuts and Siurana PDO olive oil.
- Positioning Reus in relation to vermouth and wine, associating the city’s image with quality gastronomic products, and reinforcing Reus’s role as a gateway to the wine territories.
This wine-tourism inspiration centre follows the concept of the “Maisons du Vin” found in France and the trend towards new tourist facilities that go beyond their informative mission, allowing, among other things, product tastings and the organisation of activities related to the world of vermouth and wine. It is an information and tourism inspiration space around vermouth and wine that did not previously exist in the city, and which also aims to serve as a link between Modernism and wine tourism.
During the visit, two audiovisual presentations, available in different languages, are shown:
- “The Landscapes of Wine”, located at the entrance to the space, is an introductory audiovisual presentation for the “House of Vermouth and Wine”. It introduces visitors to the history of grape-growing, from the first cultivation in Mesopotamia to 21st-century innovations, evoking important moments from Roman times and the Middle Ages, the production and export of brandy from the 18th century, the crisis caused by phylloxera, and the production of vermouth. The audiovisual then reviews the six designations of origin for the wines in the area covered by the Reus Chamber of Commerce (DOQ Priorat, DO Montsant, DO Terra Alta, DO Conca de Barberà, DO Tarragona and DO Catalunya) and highlights their food and wine and heritage attractions, inviting visitors to discover the territory.
- “The Reus Enological Station” focuses on the origins and history of this important project in the city of Reus. The narration brings to life Claudi Oliveras himself, the first director of the Enological Station, who, in a direct style, reveals to visitors the origins and motivation behind the project, the innovations it introduced at the time and its role today. The audiovisual also reviews the origins and history of Reus vermouth until it became the capital of this product, as well as the current brands.
The tastings during the visits are conducted with the collaboration of the Avellana de Reus PDO, the Siurana PDO and the eight Vermut de Reus brands: Yzaguirre, Miró, DeMuller, Rofes, Cori, Olave, Fot-li and Or del Camp.
Visits can be booked at ticket.reusturisme.cat, and during Holy Week the opening hours have been extended, with the Vermouth Space open every day.
