Everything began on 10^th of October in New York with the APVSA’s mission of penetration of the US market, alone, but accompanied by our most characteristic and representative cavas, which seem to take shape and keep us company in the moments of long and exhausting journeys. Sometimes, it seems that our cavas have a soul of their own and that with the tinkle, caused by the movement of the bottles, they want to communicate their enthusiasm in our adventure.

New York, a city that captivates us every time we cross its trafficked streets, between the beauty of the apex of the Empire State Building, the imposing Flatiron Building, the labyrinthine Rockefeller Centre, the magnificence of the Statue of Liberty, the endless avenue Broadway and the romantic Brooklyn Bridge, which was crossed for the first time by President Chester Arthur, Governor Grover Cleveland and Emilie Roebling, wife of the son of the first chief engineer of the project. It was thanks to the reins of this woman that the work was completed, facing the prevailing machismo at the time.

In this frenetic, cosmopolitan and philanthropic environment, our team had the opportunity to meet many distributors … the results? Very good acceptance by many distributors, some being astonished by the elegant and refined sumptuousness and integration of the bubbles, others more skeptical, showing difficulties to understand how to propose the cava as a product in its preparation, complexity and origin.
The second stop was in the city of Chicago, home to the wind, blues and jazz music and skyscrapers. Mark Twain wrote: “It is impossible for an occasional visitor to try to keep up with Chicago, and it grows and develops faster than the prophecies concerning it.” More than a century later, his words still sound very real.

Among distributors, influencer and blogger we felt very comfortable and well accepted, seeing even more possibilities of entrance in the market.
Next stop was Miami, the charming city of relax and fun, an international financial and cultural centre.
Being a centre of cultural and linguistic links between North America, South America and the Caribbean, it is also called “the capital of the Americas”. For Ernest Hemingway and Tennessee Williams it was a place to be calm and relaxed, thanks to its tropical climate and its Caribbean beaches, but also an inspiration. Not in vain, Hemingway wrote his only novel written in the United States, “To Have and Not to Have”, in a beautiful little house in Spanish colonial style.

The dynamics of market penetration here were a little more different. Our team, very motivated by the warm and sunny days and the proximity of the people, who made this city take a piece of our hearts, visited many restaurants and specialized shops, due to the high tourism of the city. Armed with patience and vigour of spirit, with the enthusiasm of those, who always want to obtain the best results, we get good future prospects, apart from the memories of all those who devoted their time to taste and understand our products.
A simply unforgettable trip. The human kind intrigues us in its totality and complexity, we enjoy the fact that people know us, but even more we enjoy the privilege of finding these people who by fatalist chance cross our ways. During this process of knowledge we talk to them not only about our products, but also, moved by the typical natural inclination, about our experience, our lives …

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 very proud Country, which 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 Chamber of Commerce of Terrassa and planned by the expert in International Trade Montse Llimos Torres had a positive feedback and we obtained discrete results. In addition to our team, a Novell coffee commercial and a commercial of industrial machine joined the market’s mission in Hungary.

Keep in mind that Hungary is a very difficult market to penetrate; we have to consider that strategically, it deals with a very central key-country that borders Austria, Croatia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine. For our brand is crucial to be present, but we should bear in mind that, apart from its political situation, Hungary is a quite protectionist country. The most important sectors in this country are the secondary and tertiary sector (machinery, services, technology).

As far as the wine sector is concerned, it should be noted that in the last years, Hungary has experienced a 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 factor for the Hungarian market is decisive and it is considered that the quality-price ratio of Spanish wine is better than that of Hungarian; at this point, we can affirm that Spanish wine is more competitive and we have to take advantage from this. Another reason for the presence of Spanish wines is the fact that it considerably increases the offer in a country where wine is a traditionally part of gastronomy. The Spanish white wines are emerging in recent years compared to the consolidated red wines, especially those from the Rioja appellation of origin.

Cava is a slightly delicate product to treat, since Germany and Austria are the biggest importers and since sparkling wines are produced there. Anyway, our export team met different distributors of the capital, proposing its brand and explaining exhaustively the product portfolio, and especially its vision and business values.

We patiently wait for feedback from them, after having sent our products as samples!

On behalf of the entire export team, we thank for the attention received during the cocktail at the Zenit hotel in Budapest in honor of our presence at the mission. Major Sandor from the Economic and Commercial Office of the Embassy of Spain in Hungary took care of the organization of our agenda with professionalism and patience, the market analyst Tibor and the commercial economic advisor of the Embassy of Spain in Budapest Susana de Ibarrondo Guerrilla Echevarria were unique and nice.