The end of the harvest is the end of a great emotional tension.

The grapes are now in the tanks, ready to ferment and we know that it is time to clean the tools used to harvest and let them rest, for a year, in a remote corner of the cellar and rinse the boxes stained red, because of the skins of the harvested red grape. The collection is one of those instants that stops time and marks it. End of August, September and October are months of frenetic pace and intense work. The tractors decelerate and move at a slow and linear pace crossing the main roads. In this time everything is permitted, even the most demanding drivers, are less intransigent and patient because, although in a hidden and inexpressive way, the hearts of people are sensitive to beauty and the revealing power of nature, which again, has delighted with the fruits of his land.

The end of the harvest is a celebration and, at the same time, a theatrical performance imbued with poetry. The oenologist, with his experience, is the orchestra conductor of this great «pièce» that reached the end, and the winemakers and technicians are the dancers of this pantomime, who, with their repetitive and agitated movements, arrive at the apotheosis moment: the end, the confrontation and the manifestation of the evidence of what happened in the vineyards.

Nowadays, differently from what happened in the past, in the collective imagination the end of the harvest is experienced as a moment of change: the prodigious transformation of solid matter into precious liquid, after fatigue to achieve it.

The winery returns now to its calm, the fermentations advance in an apparent immobility that hides a deep mystery (it is only at the end of this process that we can have a real idea of ​​the harvest), the vineyard begins its deserved rest with its already golden leaves and the sunset advances every day more.

The responsible work carried out by our brilliant team, previously carried out and mainly aimed at preserving the health and future development of our ecological vineyards, allowed us to collect a large part of the productive potential of these. The grapes reached the correct degree of maturity, enjoying good health: in fact, the samples analyzed were considered adequate for the production of outstanding base wines for the consequent obtaining of excellent Cava Reserva. Our celler obtained a good quality of Garnacha, Macabeo, Pinot Noir and Xarello, although the Parellada variety had less production in terms of quantity, showing itself, in any case, well structured and with a good potential to develop.

Hungarian culture is one of the richest cultures known in Europe. Hungary is a nation that for decades has been supervised by the Soviet influence, but nowadays, freed from this heavy burden, it is a country, proud that wants to show the world its tradition and its folklore without forgetting to announce the magnificence of its cultural and artistic heritage.

The mission organized by the Cambra de Comerç de Terrassa and planned by the expert in International Trade Montse Llimós Torres had positive results for our brand. In addition to our team, a Novell coffee commercial and a commercial industrial machine joined the market research mission in Hungarian lands.
It is important to keep in mind that Hungary is a very difficult market to penetrate. Strategically, it is a very central country which borders Austria, Croatia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine and it is very important to be present, but we must bear in mind that apart from its political situation, Hungary is a quite protectionist country. The most important sectors for them, what the import is concerned, are the secondary and tertiary sector (machinery, services, technology).

As far as the wine sector is concerned, it should be noted that in recent years Hungary has experienced gradual growth, but also a reduction in the volume of imports and an increase in exports, being a reference country in the wine sector with its production of Tokaji. The Hungarian government and the companies themselves invest in advertising campaigns and use different means to attract attention to local wines.

The price for the Hungarian market factor is decisive and it is considered that the value of Spanish wine is better than the Hungarian one. We can affirm that Spanish wine is more competitive and we have to seize this leads. Another reason for the presence of Spanish wines is the fact that it considerably increases the offer in a country where wine is a drink that is traditionally part of gastronomy. The white wines that our land offers are emerging in recent years compared to the consolidated red wines, especially those from the Rioja appellation of origin.

Cava is a bit delicate product to treat because there are sparkling wines that supply most of the consumption and, as Germany and Austria are the biggest importers, it is very difficult to penetrate. However, nothing is impossible!

Our export team met distributors, proposing its brand and comprehensively explaining the product portfolio, the processing techniques used and especially their vision and corporate values.
On behalf of the entire export team, we thank for the attention received during the cocktail at the Zenit in Budapest in honor of our presence at the mission. Major Sandor of the Economic and Commercial Office of the Embassy of Spain in Hungary who dealt with the organization of our agenda with professionalism and patience, theb market analyst Tibor and the commercial economic counselor of the Embassy of Spain in Budapest Susana de Ibarrondo and Guerrilla Echevarria.

Our export team flew to Southern California in order to give commercial support to the sellers.

The first day we were very animated in the company of Mark, from Wine Warehouse who with his energetic attitude and entrepreneurial spirit, accompanied us to visit restaurants and shops in the areas bordering Los Angeles. The feedback turned out to be very positive and the cava, as we realized during the last trips, is a product that finally starts to have a good status.

The following day, in company of Danielle, who visited our winery two years ago during the periodic visit that Classical wines organizes each year and who hosts pleasant memories of our winery, we toured restaurants and end customers. The day is much more intense than the previous one, visiting a total of 6 wineries and restaurants. The interest was very high and the questions were very frequent and specific. The implicated areas were Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Downtown, a potential market for our brand and the embodiment of our desire that finally becomes reality.

The days followed with an increasingly intense agenda and this motivated us and made us even more pretentious and hopeful.

Between clients and clients, we found different situations and scenarios to consider. A restaurant was intrigued with our products and passed a command at the time of the visit; other customers remained faithful to their Prosecos and are immovable.

Later, we moved to Orange Country to spend a day working with Edward, discovering every corner of the spot and getting to know the inhabitants up close. This county is one of the pristine areas of the United States. An always-sunny place, full of breathtaking views of the ocean and rich of attractions for all ages.

In one of our routes, we met the owner of an Italian restaurant that serves our Extremarium cava and he is so much satisfied with our products that he would like to expand its range with new references.

There is no doubt that Orange County is a key for us being a tourist and family place, we do not forget that it has the Disneyland Park. Among characters such as Alice in Wonderland, Dumbo and Mikey mouse, and restaurants where meals are organized with the best-known characters, we organized a tasting of our products. It was something sensational and in special and sometimes strange company!

The last day is propaedeutic and served as a training for the Wine Warehouse team that consists of 20 workers with a subdivision in Sothern team and Northern team. Our intention was to clarify and explain the process of elaborating a cava, since not everyone has knowledge of the traditional method of production and enter more specifically about our range of cavas.

This business trip was surely unique in its kind and incomparable. Summing up we can firmly affirm that the US market is receiving our products very positively and openly, the outlook is very versatile and the interest and desire to try new products, experience new sensations and pairings and the value of quality, is very great.

Despert began to import wine in Belgium after the First World War.

Of course, at the dawn of the company, the focus was much more towards the importation of French wines, but the new members of Despert also challenged themselves by starting to deal with wines from Spain, Portugal, Italy, Chile and South Africa, a challenge for them!

Our team has maintained with them for years a relationship of trust, professionalism and true friendship, every time they visit us or we visit their land, the treatment is the most enviable of all. One of the last events we attended was a promotion action. For us Despert is a great central figure for what is the Belgian market, always loyal to ou Extremarium range.

Our intense but pleasant journey started very early in the morning, where the event allowed us to attend the stands of different wineries to meet and taste the products offered, not only from those wineries that were present at the event, but also from those that did not have representatives there. Consumers had in this way the possibility to taste 200 wines among which our cavas.

Extremarium Brut Reserva and Extremarium Brut Nature Rosado competed with Spumante, Cremant, South Africa sparkling wine and Champagne.

Our Extremarium was of great interest. This cava is the fruit of our vineyards, where we breathe a fresh and healthy air, in an area characterized by an intact bucolic landscape, where the land is prepared to receive every year the fruits of the vines in its belly. An environment where the crunch of the leaves, the song of the birds and the noise of the fatigue of the vintners, who work tirelessly these lands, take visitors from these parcels to another dimension. A remote dimension to the frenetic pace of cities and the stress of everyday life. A cava, which is a hymn to the little joys of life that are made of unforgettable moments in the company of our loved ones.

Statistics show that the rosé version of the Extremarium cava has been one of the best-selling products. The fact of participating next to the sparkling products was positive and of good impact facing our cava. Analyzing the success of the event and listening with great attention to the feelings and reflections of the participants, we believe it is possible to increase our product range in Despert and participate with other references. We hope our next planned trip will arrive soon.

Belgium for us is a culturally very advanced country, where visitors are taken cared and pampered. Homeland of intense history, rich of beautiful medieval cities, varied cuisine and vibrant atmosphere of its streets. The inhabitants know how to live in a simple way, enjoying nature and this makes them very inclines to our business philosophy.