Welcome
Welcome to the Virtual Tour of the Ecomuseo Lagar de Torrijos, located in the Montes de Málaga Natural Park in the province of Málaga. Here, you will be able to discover the assets of this Natural Park within the framework of the Network of Protected Natural Areas of Andalusia (RENPA).
In this centre, the visitor can find a central space where the reception and the Natural Space shop converge, where they will be attended to and where they will have the chance to buy a product or two related to the environment. In this ecomuseum you will be able to know in an authentic way this natural space and the ethnography surrounding its winemaking activity.
Enveloped by dense pine forests that characterise the Montes de Málaga mountain range and providing the gateway to one of the most attractive paths in the natural park, you can find this ancient Lagar (wine press).
This region of the Montes de Málaga was very famous in the past for producing magnificent sweet, semi-sweet and dry wines. Today there are still some traditional constructions from those times that have been conserved, although they are scattered.
Lagares are buildings whose main part is dedicated to wine-making. Worthy of note is the one at El Lagar de Torrijos, which dates back to 1843 and is representative of the wine presses of the Montes de Málaga. This building, which has been substantially preserved as it was built, currently houses the aforementioned ecomuseum, which is a must-see for visitors to the Montes de Málaga Natural Park.
Inside visitors can learn all about the traditional production of the exquisite wines which brought fame to the region. In addition, you can visit the outbuildings where you will find ovens for baking bread, an oil mill and even the house.
After a tour of the Ecomuseum, it is very interesting to explore some of the other wine presses along the Torrijos path.
In these links you can find more information about this Protected Natural Area with downloadable material such as trails, opening hours, how to get there, map with all the facilities for public use, etc.
Ecomuseum Lagar de Torrijos: lajunta.es/3sq8q
Montes de Málaga Natural Park: lajunta.es/3sq8r
Complete your visit with ecotourism experiences with local companies. You can consult the offer in the following link: ecoturismoandaluz.com
For activities aimed at the educational community, associations of people with functional diversity and local population, you can access through the link: reservatuvisita.ecoturismoandaluz.com
The wine press
A highlight at the ecomuseum is the wooden beam press that we can see at the entrance, spectacular thanks to a large tree trunk that together with a one ton stone, crushed and pressed the grapes. At the top of this screw, a bowl is provided for the pressing of the grape to extract its juice
Fermenting room
In this room you can see the semi-buried earthenware storage jars used where the must was fermented for forty days until the wine was obtained. After this process the wine was decanted into barrels where it spent several months until being transported for sale.
In the room you can see traditional winemaking tools and an old bottling machine. This room also features a section of a pine tree of enormous dimensions showing the historical events that occurred during the life of this specimen.
The courtyard
All the rooms that formed part of the former Lagar are distributed from the courtyard. It is a large area with aromatic plants as well as other ornamental plants typical of the courtyards of Andalusia, such as geraniums and carnations.
The living room and fireplace
In the middle and upper part of the house the living quarters have been conserved of the farmers who cultivated the vine and the olive tree. The living is decorated according to the period and lets you imagine how the inhabitants of the lagares spent their leisure time. This living room has a huge fireplace that was also used as a kitchen. At the top you will find the rooms.
Kitchen and oil mill
In this room you can see an oven and an oil mill. These elements offer clues about the change in use of this wine press due to the phylloxera plague of the late 19th century. Phylloxera is a parasitic insect that lives in the leaves and roots of the vine, sucking the sap from the plants, injuring the roots and eventually killing it. After this plague, the olive grove replaced the wine business and that is why this oil mill is built consisting of three 200-kilo rollers that were moved by an animal for the production of oil.
It also has a bread oven, used today for workshops on artisan bread making.