Until just a few years ago, craft beer in Spain was in demand by just a handful of select epicureans. Most of us were happy if the caña was cold, well poured and our favourite brand – although even this latter requirement was not an absolute necessity.

But like a silent tide coming in from other latitudes, craft-beer fever has spread across Spain, where bars, supermarkets and delis now stock entire shelves with bottles bearing attention-grabbing labels and offering a variety of flavors and styles that we could scarcely have imagined were possible.

The Spanish Royal Academy (RAE), the body that oversees use of the Spanish language, has nine meanings for the word leche and more than 40 idioms employing it. Clearly, leche is much more than the milk Spain keeps in its refrigerators: it can also be a cosmetic product, a vulgar way to refer to semen, a punch in the face, and even good luck in some Latin American countries like Ecuador, Mexico, El Salvador and Venezuela.

Maybe it’s because they are walled in by mountains. Or because of their odd location that makes them neither from Galicia, Asturias or León – although they share traits with people from all three regions.

An itinerary for rookies and returning runners alike to get the most out of this famous red-and-white orgy