What Is Txotx? Meaning of the Basque Cider Ritual

Txotx (pronounced "choch") is the Basque cider ritual: someone opens the big wooden barrel, shouts "Txotx!", and everyone at the table gets up, glass in hand, to catch a thin stream of natural cider straight from the barrel. You take a couple of fingers, go back to your seat, and repeat all through the meal. The rest of this page covers how it works, where it comes from and where to try it.

We're Higeralde Sagarlekua, a cider house in Hondarribia with views over the Cantabrian Sea, and txotx is at the heart of everything we do. If you're here to plan a visit, you can go straight to our booking page.

What txotx means

The word names both the call and the moment. The kupela is the large wooden barrel where the natural cider rests. When it's opened, a fine, steady stream comes out, and the shout of "Txotx!" tells the guests it's time to come over.

You don't fill the glass. Just a couple of fingers, drunk straight away, and then back to the barrel as many times as you like. That coming and going between the table and the kupela is what turns a dinner into something shared.

There's a reason for the small pours. As the cider falls from up high and breaks against the glass, it opens up and releases its aromas. That's why natural cider tastes different straight from the kupela than settled in a bottle.

How txotx works at the table

If it's your first time, this is all you need to know:

• Wait for the call. When you hear "Txotx!", get up and head to the kupela.
• Hold your glass out to the stream, so the cider falls from a height and breaks against the glass.
• Take a little. A couple of fingers, not a full glass.
• Drink it right away, while it's lively, and go back whenever you want another.

Where the tradition comes from

Cider culture in the Basque Country goes back centuries, to the farmhouses that made their own cider from the apples around them. The txotx season, roughly January to April, was the moment to taste the year's cider straight from the kupelas, alongside the classic cider house menu.

That menu is part of the ritual too: salt cod omelette, fried cod with peppers, grilled chuletón (bone-in rib steak) and, to finish, cheese with quince paste and walnuts. Simple, produce-driven dishes, made to go with the cider and the conversation. We explain the format in more detail in our post on the cider house menu in Hondarribia.

Txotx at Higeralde Sagarlekua

What makes our txotx ours is where the cider comes from. We've spent more than 15 years in the world of the apple, with two orchards of native varieties and a partnership with the historic Zelaia cider house in Hernani. The apple isn't just one more ingredient here. It runs through the whole experience, from the tree to the kupela.

The classic season is when the atmosphere peaks, but you don't have to wait for it: we keep the kupela open all year round. And if you'd rather, there's our bottled natural cider too, made from the same apples.

Then there are the views. We're up on the hills of Hondarribia, at Akartegi 37, with the Cantabrian Sea in sight. Few cider houses let you do txotx with a landscape like this one.

How to come and try it

• Book ahead, especially at weekends. Use our booking page or call +34 659 11 61 43.
• Come hungry and unhurried. Txotx is a long, lingering meal.
• Take a look at our kitchen before you come. We don't publish a list of dishes: we cook with fresh, seasonal produce, and the apple shows up from start to finish.

Want to make a night of it? The Casa Rural Higeralde guesthouse is right next door: txotx in the evening, valley views when you wake up.