More than ten wineries are undergoing an audit to enter Corpinnat, which closes a historic harvest.

TorrelavitThe 19 producers of the Corpinnat collective brand are enjoying a boom. The brand has grown 58% in the last year, going from 12 to 19 member wineries. The last ones are AT Roca and Mas Bertran, which together alone total 400,000 bottles under the Corpinnat umbrella. At a meeting to share data on the harvest, they also provided information on the trickle of new additions. "More than ten wineries are being audited [to join Corpinnat]. We have very demanding regulations and we will be very strict with these additions," said Corpinnat's vice president, Roc Gramona, who acknowledged that there are more than they initially thought there would be. What's more, the winery that will be 20 years old will be announced at the beginning of the year, according to Pere Llopart, president of Corpinnat.

This year's harvest, moreover, has been exceptional "both in terms of the quantity and quality of the grapes," they say, so the 2025 vintage will be one of the best in recent times. "The best in twenty years," affirmed Gramona. A total of 8 million kilos of grapes have been imported from all wineries to produce sparkling and still wines. Last year, the figure was 4.5 million. The main variety is Xarel lo, which accounts for more than a third of these 8 million. Ninety-four percent of the varieties vinified by these wineries are native, and they have set a goal of eliminating any native varieties by 2035. One of the requirements that Corpinnat imposes on the wineries, in addition to having their own vineyards, is to set a minimum price for the grapes that must be purchased to guarantee the viability of the farmers' business. The minimum price established this year was 92 cents per kilo. This threshold has never been lowered, and on average, wineries have paid €1.10 for sparkling wines and €1.05 for still wine. Incavi, the Catalan Institute of Vine and Wine, had set a minimum price of €45 cents. For farmers working with the collective brand, they have earned an average of between 7,000 and 7,300 euros per hectare.

The future of Catalan wine

Aside from celebrating a good year, two other issues for the future were discussed. One is not forgetting that it's necessary to do our homework to be ready if another drought comes. "We're leaving behind one of the most intense and longest droughts the Penedès has ever experienced. We can't relax and pretend we didn't experience it. It won't be an exception. Everyone must do their job to be able to cope with the harsh climate much better than we are," said Xavier Nadal, general manager of Cellers. Options are being considered in this regard, such as the possibility of implementing backup irrigation.

The second issue for the future is Corpinnat's role in the sector. Llopart acknowledged that talks with Clàssic Penedès have not stopped, as has the possibility that Corpinnat could become another DO in the future. "We have recognition from Incavi and the Department of Agriculture. Before, it was scarce, but we have come closer together recently. We know we don't have the support that the DOs have access to because we are not DOs, but other avenues have opened up. The DOs have done a lot for the country and for Catalan wine, but we can't deny that there are other realities, and we are all Catalan wine, and we are all Catalan wine,