Corpinnat, a differential project
That the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) Cava, which in addition to the traditional wineries of Penedès –90% of production is made in Catalonia– integrates others from territories such as Aragon, Navarre, La Rioja, the Basque Country, the Valencian Community and Extremadura, was not a very comfortable arrangement for some producers was already known. The product's visibility is not very uniform, probably due to the disparity of origins, and the state-level regulations governing the designation do not satisfy some producers.
The creation of the collective brand Corpinnat in April 2018, which led to some changes in the DO –changes, however, that did not manage to retain those who had left–, made this evident. Corpinnat, in addition to prioritizing longer aging periods and high-end products, was based on territorial roots and, specifically, on Penedès, a true seal of origin.
Since then, much has changed in the world of cava. The two largest companies, Freixenet and Codorníu, currently have foreign owners and strategies more focused on their own brands. All this has led Juvé & Camps to decide to join the Corpinnat project. With this new addition, the brand now includes 22 wineries from Penedès. But, in addition, it attracts to the collective brand a producer that makes almost as many sparkling wines –it has an annual production of 2.5 million bottles– as the collective brand produced in total, which was three million. Last year, the seventh year of Corpinnat's existence, this association benefited from a good harvest after three years of drought and an expansion in the number of wineries, which led to a 27% increase in sales, to 34.13 million euros.
The birth of Corpinnat was a first call for attention on the need to prioritize the product. The arguments that have led Juvé & Camps to join Corpinnat are defining characteristics of this association. These are organic vineyards, hand-harvesting, the predominance of classic Penedès varieties – to emphasize the commitment to origin –, integrated production in the same winery – which means not being able to buy base wine or must –, a minimum aging of eighteen months in the bottle, having a sparkling wine of thirty months and another of sixty months aging, and the obligation to pay a guaranteed minimum price to the farmer. In essence, a strategy that is common to all components of this collective brand: to seek value over volume, the key to differentiation and an essential goal for small and medium-sized companies.
Juvé & Camps does not leave the DO Cava by slamming the door. On the contrary, it considers that there is space for all strategies and visions of the business and that the DO Cava and Corpinnat are not antagonistic but complementary. It also believes that the DO Cava has done things well in recent years, especially since the first producers left to found Corpinnat. From that moment on, there was a greater emphasis on long aging. In any case, it considers itself more comfortable in the new association and believes that customers better understand the concept, which, according to the company itself, is identified with "magnificent Penedès sparkling wines". Its incorporation drives Corpinnat and at the same time strengthens Juvé & Camps' strategy on the path of differentiation without any intention of breaking with the DO Cava. Each with its own strategy.
