Our hometown of La Ràpita, Spain, is famous for its abundant seafood. Each year we take our wine club on a tour to our region and one of the highlights is visiting the mussel farms and watching the fishermen bring in the fresh catch of the day! Our town is located right on the Mediterranean within the natural delta of the Ebro which makes it an abundantly nutritious location for all kinds of seafood from mussels, oysters, prawns, octopus and many specialties such as razor clams, galeras and tallarines.

The black rice paella is made with seafood broth and squid ink. As you can tell, it’s one of my favorites!

There is nothing like watching the fisherman unload the fresh catch of the day! It amazes me how many different kinds of fish and seafood they bring in each and every day! They take it directly to the live fish auction where wholesalers bid and transport directly to the best restaurants in Barcelona and the entire country.

The fisherman make their fresh catch look perfect as they wait in line to get their boxes weighed and labeled for auction. It doesn’t get much fresher than this!

Here is a sample of a Galera which is a crustacean that used to be thrown away and has now turned into a delicacy. It has such a sweet delicious flavor and is popular for making paellas. Notice the label says “Llotja de Peix Sant Carles de la Rapita” which translates to “Fish Auction of San Carlos de la Rapita.” It’s so cool to see the auctioned off fish at the grocery store!

Thes baby clams called Tallarines are very rare to find. If you ask for Tallarines in Barcelona, they will bring you a plate of pasta!

They are so delicious. My favorite type is when they sauté in olive oil and sliced garlic.

Each year we take our wine club members to the Muscleras which are the mussel farms. They grow the mussels and oysters on strings hanging from the docks. They have strict regulations and can only serve the products they grow because it is an agricultural zone, but luckily they allow for Cava to wash it down! “L’Avi Agusti ” translates to Grandpa Agustus. Isn’t he cute?

Look at these amazing oysters! Grown directly below our feet! Did you know it takes 2 years before they are ready to harvest?

These mussel farmers string the baby mussels on long ropes and then tie them onto the docks to grow. Mussels average 9 months to harvest so they often stagger the seeding so they will extend the season.

These are the best mussels I’ve had in my life! The salt water already provides the natural seasoning!

Markus and I love taking the boat out to the mussel farms! Hope you can come join us on our next Wine Club Tour to Spain!