In these turbulent times, as has already happened on other occasions, voices arise calling for a boycott of Catalan products, an agitation that according to the Requena Cava Producers Association "is not positive and ends up harming everyone. The conflict is not a flag for us."
They know this from experience, as they point out that in other politically turbulent stages, when this has happened, the negative effect has been for the entire Denomination of Origin, of which 159 municipal areas of seven autonomous communities are part: Catalonia is the one that contributes the most (132), but it is also made up of La Rioja (18), the Basque Country (3), Aragón (2), Navarra (2), Extremadura (1) and Valencia (1).
The producers of Cava de Requena are at the threshold of the Christmas campaign, which, regardless of what happens in the political context, is presented with many uncertainties. They affirm that there is a great lack of knowledge of what the campaign will be like due to inflation, due to the lower purchasing power of the consumer and due to the general increase in prices, which cava has not applied this year but from which it will not escape in 2024. The rise in Prices of raw materials, glass or cardboard will have to be reflected in the prices of the new year, they warn.
The reflection in which to look is that of 2022, which was a record year. The forecasts are, a priori, that there will be "good behavior" of the consumer, adhering, the Association explains, to the spirit of Carpe Diem. That is, the consumer will pay the rest in December and in 2024, God will say.
A good day to take the pulse of this campaign will take place this weekend, as the ninth edition of the Valencian Cava Fair is being held at the Colón Market in Valencia. The seven wineries that make up the Requena Cava Producers Association (Coviñas, Chozas Carrascal, Dominio de la Vega, Hispano Swissas, Cavas Marevia, Pago de Tharsys and Torre Oria) will participate - there are two other producers in the area, but they are not associated - and whose production capacity stands at 14 million bottles per year.
However, they explain that this 2023 there has been a smaller harvest than last year, although they do not expect the difference in production to be very large compared to last year. In this regard, La Unió Llauradora y Ramadera already warned a few months ago of "significant" declines in the wine grape harvest of 60% in areas such as Utiel-Requena due to the adverse weather, especially the drought and, to a lesser extent, the hailstones
Likewise, the Requena cava producers assure that the group is going through "one of its best moments", both in sales and in consolidating its image of prestige and quality in the national and international market.
Their weapons are the "peculiar" climate of the Requense municipality, its altitude, the thermal contrast between day and night and the qualities of its soils, advantages that allow them to grow "optimal grapes of superior quality for the production of sparkling wines of second fermentation in the bottle (traditional method) fresh, complex, creamy and with extraordinary storage capacity.
