Ciderhouse / Txotx
from January to the end of Mai
Ciderhouse menu
Salt cod omelette / Salt cod with peppers / Bone-in ribeye steak / Cheese with quince paste and walnuts.
Cider house menu price: €
THE CIDER HOUSE opens for business for the “Txotx” season, starting in mid-January and ending in late May, from Tuesday to Friday evenings for dinner, and on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays for both lunch and dinner. Weekly rest Monday.
Ciderhouse menu for children
Plate of Eusko Label veal hamburger with croquettes and calamari, ice cream dessert and either our own natural apple juice or water.
Price: €14,50
under 12 years old
In addition to the cider house menu we have
several children’s menus so that the
smallest among us can also enjoy the
cider house fun with their “aitatxos”
(fond term for ‘parents’ in the Basque language).
Txotx
The TXOTX ritual dates back to the time when buyers would come to the cider house and taste cider from the different barrels to choose the one they wanted to take away with them in bottles.
The term describes the moment the barrel is opened and the cider pours out in a jet into the glass.
Today it has become a full-blown social, cultural and tourist event where, in addition to cider, guests enjoy a magnificent menu consisting of salt cod omelette, pieces of salt cod with peppers, charcoal-grilled bone-in ribeye steak, cheese with quince paste and walnuts.
While clients are tucking into their meal, the cider maker opens a small tap in the barrel to the cry of “TXOTX”. The diners make their way to the barrels, glass in hand, and stand in a queue; the moment the jet of cider hits the glass is unique as the cider ‘breaks’ against its sides to produce the “Txinparta”. Having filled the glass no more than a centimetre and a half, the glass is removed from the jet and the cider drunk down in a single gulp. The ritual can be repeated as often as you like or can take… Meanwhile, the cider maker opens different barrels to permit the tasting and comparison between brews; the conversation and atmosphere created is simply impossible to find elsewhere.
LIVEmusic
On Friday and Saturday nights we also provide live performances by trikitilaris playing the trikitixa, a typical small Basque accordion, and groups singing songs from Basque folklore to entertain the diners, creating unforgettable moments.
Ola Sagardotegia
The Ola cider maker was opened in 1999. It is located in an old 13th century forge, known as Arantzateko Burniola, which has been recovered to transform it into the current cider maker. It is worth seeing its spectacular original walls, which have been conserved to the present day.