Rejas de San Esteban – Churches, Wine Cellars and La Loma

Rejas de San Esteban lies between the Castillo and La Loma hills on the Soria section of the Ribera del Duero Wine Route. The village is designated an Asset of Cultural Interest as a historic site and is known for its underground wine cellars and wine presses.

Culture and Architecture

San Martín has a portal with four decorated archivolts and a porch with seven semicircular arches. They are supported by twin or clustered columns with capitals decorated with vegetal motifs. Since 14 November 1980, the church has been protected as an Asset of Cultural Interest in the category of a historic-artistic monument.

San Martín contains Gothic murals in the apsidal half-dome and the presbytery, whose colours include black, brown and red. On the Gospel side of the presbytery, the twelve figures depicted are considered to be the twelve Apostles. The church also houses the Virgen de la Guía; a depiction of Saint Christopher can be seen on the south wall of the nave.

The porch of San Martín has seven arcades crowned with diamond points and two entrances. Until its restoration in 1982, it was used as a livestock shelter. San Ginés now has five arches at its porch, along with the springing of a sixth arch.

The church of San Ginés has two naves separated by two semicircular arches resting on pillars. The main nave is covered by a 16th-century Mudejar-style rafter-and-collar-beam roof decorated with heraldic motifs. Of the original Romanesque structure, only the porch, portal and cornice of the south wall remain; the capitals feature animal depictions and figurative motifs.

Village Character and Cuisine

The traditional houses in Rejas de San Esteban have rubble-masonry walls on the ground floor and wooden and earthen elements on the upper floor. Their traditional roofs are gabled and covered with tiles in the local “a la segoviana” style.

Wood-fired milk-fed lamb is part of the local cuisine in Rejas de San Esteban. A wine from the Ribera del Duero is presented as an accompaniment to the local cuisine.

Landscape and Historical Traces

La Loma is a viewpoint overlooking the valley of the Madre, or Rejas, River as far as its confluence with the Duero. The Castillo hill is associated with a former Muslim fortification and contains underground galleries.

In the surroundings of Rejas de San Esteban, the remains of the Ermita de la Virgen de los Perales can be seen between El Pontón and La Zarzona. The landscape, historical traces and architecture thus offer different focal points for exploring the village.

Visiting and Getting There

The Romanesque Route along the Duero includes the churches of San Ginés and San Martín in Rejas de San Esteban. For visits to San Martín and San Ginés, visitors should check the Abrimos programme for the summer and Holy Week.

Rejas de San Esteban celebrates a festival in honour of Saint Anthony. From Soria, the route follows the N-122 to San Esteban de Gormaz and then the SO-P-5003 road.

More destinations

Langa De Duero, Almarza, Velamazán, Valdelinares, Buitrago, Cubilla, Santa María de Huerta, Garray

To the higher-level travel overview: Soria.