The magic of the Salinas de Añana, the oldest salt factory in the world (and the secret of the best chefs)

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At first glance, the landscape is incomprehensible.

The salt has taken the valley.

How?

When?

Why?

In the Salinas de Añana, the oldest salt factory in the world, the desire to know assails.

Everything is white, strange, unique... And tasty.

Because from the first step there is no one who can resist touching and sucking their thumb.

"You are invited to try our brine," the guide will say later, to everyone's peace of mind.

"It is

than all the seas. If the world average is 35 grams of salt per liter of water, in the Añana salt flats the concentration reaches 250 grams per liter."

Welcome to the fascinating

, a place with

half an hour from Vitoria that today is more alive than ever.

This summer, production has broken records, and it shows.

A crust of salt still covers the wooden walkways through which the visitor enters this

(the platforms where this white gold evaporates), four kilometers of canals and 850 wells.

Stalactites of salt hang everywhere.

We'll talk about them later.

Before, the million dollar question.

Where the hell does such salty water come from in an indoor area?

Kristina Arregui, coordinator of the tourist services of the Sacred Valley, has this and all the answers.

"We don't have a sea, but we did have it more than 200 million years ago."

What happens in this valley is a geological phenomenon called

.

From the bowels of the earth comes the salt of the disappeared Tethys Sea.

Wooden rollers.MGH

At the head of the Sacred Valley, the heart of the salt exploitation, you can see one of the springs from which salt water flows at a rate of about

.

For the people of the valley, this is the magic point par excellence of Añana.

At the source where a whole

, architectural, environmental, archaeological and landscape phenomenon of millennia is born with the salt workers as the main transmitters and guardians.

To find out about their work and how they

there is nothing like signing up for the salt workshop.

First of all: take off your shoes.

"We are going to work as if we were salt workers all our lives," says Aitor, who supervises the activity.

The process hasn't really changed

, but that doesn't mean it's easy.

With a kind of crane or trebuchet, the first thing is to fill the threshing floor with brine about two centimeters ("up to the big toe").

Right away you can see who was born for the job and who definitely wasn't.

looks out of the corner of his eye

: "Soft, soft, please," asks the 63-year-old expert, a legend in the valley.

Salineros removing the beds.

During the workshop, the visitor learns to carry out the most important work in the process: that of

to ensure that it crystallizes homogeneously or, in local jargon, to prevent the salt from

.

Then it is collected in baskets and deposited in the warehouses... Aitor literally hands out a bag of salt to everyone who deserves the wages.

the saline spa

It is not the only reward.

The traveler can also

.

All you have to do is roll up your sleeves to your knees and enjoy the warm brine while you take in the surroundings.

It is another way of feeling the two essential elements of the saline universe: the heat of the sun and the action of the wind.

In the season, from May to September, Añana collects about 150,000 kilos of spring salt and 22,000 of flakes or

, which require even more expertise to collect as it forms within a few hours of starting to stir the brine.

For Kristina, the most "romantic" moment of the production occurs when that "first film that dances to the sound of the wind breaks in the sun."

You have to be on the lookout to pick it up with the

that only the experienced salt collector is capable of.

"If those flowers stop floating, you lose them forever."

Kristina Arregui during the guided tour.

the salt licks

There is a third variety, those stalactites called chuzos and converted into a

.

"Before it was thought that they had no value. This year we sell them at 30 euros a piece. They have reached 55."

The chuzo de sal is also tasted during the

in one of the old salt warehouses.

The instructions are clear again: we bring the salt with the thumb to the central area of ​​the tongue and press with the palate.

Everything is subjective, but at this point you would have to be very stupid not to appreciate this gourmet product.

Chuzos de sal, the gastronomic 'delicatessen'. MGH

"Cooks tell us that it is the best salt in the world," says the guide.

"What they appreciate is that it doesn't salt, but rather enhances the flavor of the food."

Walking through the salt pans you can read the names of the ambassador chefs of Añana:

, Dani García, Andoni Aduriz, the Roca Brothers... Some of the eras are dedicated to them and their restaurants.

The support of the chefs is recognition of what this Añana family has achieved, united around the Valle Salado Foundation.

They are not only responsible for the operation of this unique salt factory, but also its conservators.

The exploitation adds more than 5,000 eras.

Today they have managed

, just enough to supply the market and develop a pioneering

that is included in the European Valsipam initiative that promotes the development of the most important agricultural areas in the world.

The valley has something for every type of traveler.

In the late afternoon, the culmination of the visit can be a

.

Immersion in this unique nature is well worth it.

You have to pay attention to the sounds, the smells, the dimmer light and the caress of the wind.

This is the spice of life.

PRACTICAL GUIDE

How to get.

Salinas de Añana is located 30 kilometers from Vitoria.

Where to eat.

In Almazen, just in front of the salt flats.

An old salt warehouse converted into a restaurant for 12 diners where chef

unfolds live cuisine based on local products (there is no menu) paired, of course, with salt from Salinas.

A complete gastronomic experience by reservation.

Where to sleep.

In the rural house Madera y Sal in the same town of Salinas and run with great kindness by Zuri and Edu, who bought the house in ruins and restored it themselves.

It has three apartments, although it can be rented as a whole.

More information.

On the Valle Salado website (www.vallesalado.com) with all the details of its activities, workshops and more.

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