The Cava Denomination of Origin (DO) wineries closed last year with figures that set a new record: 252 million bottles sold worldwide (1.09% more than the previous year) and 2.2 billion euros billing (8% more). The numbers show a strong and resilient sector in a year that was expected to be economically difficult and in which national demand has boosted sales. But at the same time there are two important warnings: international demand is not going through its best moment—and especially American demand, which fell 13.5%—and the coming years will be marked by the impact of the drought. The lack of rain is making the vineyards suffer, and in the DO as a whole, grape production has fallen by almost 30% since 2021. The situation is worse if we look only at Catalonia, where the majority of DO Cava wineries are located. , and where the production of this fruit has plummeted by 37.8% in the last three years due to the drought. “There will be less grapes than we will need to continue with this sales rate, the wineries will be emptying their reserves and therefore we will no longer see the same number of bottles sold,” explained Javier Pagés, president of the Regulatory Council. of the DO Cava, at a lunch to present the results of the sector. Pagés has also announced that a guarantee provision tool will be created to have reserves of base wine with which to help wineries.
The extreme drought in which Catalonia has been immersed for more than three years – and which last February led the Government of the Generalitat to decree the emergency phase for an area that covers eight out of every 10 Catalans – has an impact on all economic sectors, also in agriculture, which is now subject to the restriction of reducing irrigation provision by 80%. The vine needs a considerable amount of water, and as Pagés recalled, the combination of lack of rain and irrigation restrictions is already causing some vines to die and others cannot be planted because the land is too dry. “Climate change affects us a lot, now because of the drought. We are working as much as possible to alleviate the effects, because we are concerned about the viability of the winegrowers, but we depend more on what the administrations can do,” said Pagés.
The impact of the drop in production will be seen first in the reduction of winery stocks, then in the increase in prices and finally in the fact that fewer bottles will be sold. “And each winery will have to plan, perhaps abandoning the least profitable clients and focusing on the most strategic ones,” said Pagés. The Regulatory Council will try to stop the blow with the creation of a guarantee provision tool, to provide base wine (the product with which cava is made) to the wineries that need it, with the aim of being able to draw these reserves for three years. “We had not experienced something like this until now, but other DOs, such as Champagne and Rioja, already have these tools. We are going to take measures within what we can do,” said the president of the Council.
The sector hopes to compensate for the drop in bottles sold and the increase in costs due to the drought with a price increase that it has been pursuing for some time. The DO Cava has worked in recent years to increase the value of its product and measure itself against its competitors, the champagne and the prosecco. “Our goal is to give value to the sector and for consumers to see it. As the wineries understand that they have to bet on value, we will see how the price will increase,” said Pagés, who highlights the good progress of organic products (they grew by 24.6% in number of bottles). Another novelty last year was that for the first time bottles with a Guarda Superior cava label went on the market, with a new regulation that sets the minimum aging at 18 months, and with a specific vocation that they be organic.
Last year's global growth of the DO Cava – which includes Catalan wineries, but also Valencia and Extremadura – was 1.09%, between one and two points below the forecasts made by the Council in December. The domestic market, also reactivated by the tourism that came to Spain last year, is the one that has generated the most sales, with an increase in bottles sold of 4.02%, while the international market remained stagnant (- 0.25%), due to inflation and economic turbulence. This circumstance is in line with what has happened in general with Spanish wine exports, which fell by 4% in volume and 3.4% in value. The first foreign market for cava is Germany, which rose 4.14%, followed by the United States, which reduced its demand by 13.5%, and Belgium (+ 5.4%). “The United States is the most competitive market, customers are willing to pay well for the product and cava competes with other sparkling wines. What has happened is a mismatch in inventories: a lot was exported to the United States, reserves were filled and now this is what is being noticed,” said the president of the Council.
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