The master of the mythical winery of Gelida, town crier of La Mercè 2026

BarcelonaAntoni Falgueras, master winemaker, will be the town crier for La Mercè 2026. This was announced this Wednesday by the mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, during the presentation of the first novelties of the city's main festival. Collboni highlighted Falgueras' career as a reference figure in wine culture and his roots in Barcelona. The master winemaker will be in charge of kicking off a festival that will be reflected in a poster designed by visual artist Cinta Vidal.

Antoni Falgueras (Barcelona, 1948) represents the fourth generation at the helm of Celler de Gelida, the emblematic establishment on Vallespir street founded in 1895. Since then, the family business has specialized in the selection and sale of wines, cavas, and spirits from all over the world. Falgueras received the Medal of Agricultural Merit from France in 2008 and the Aliments d'Espanya Award, given by the Ministry of Agriculture. He is also a founding member of Mestres Cellerers de Catalunya and the Catalan Association of Sommeliers, a member of the Tastavins Academy of Sant Humbert and all Catalan guilds, as well as an honorary guild member of the Cava Guild. Furthermore, he is part of the French guilds Clos de Vougeot, Armagnac, and Champagne, as well as the guild of Northern Catalonia.

During the event, which took place at Palauet Albéniz, the poster for Mercè 2026 was also presented, which Collboni explained would "also be a mural". The author is the visual artist Cinta Vidal, who has created a work that incorporates emblematic spaces of Barcelona from an innovative perspective to represent a city made of connections and discoveries. Collboni described the mural poster as a "nod to the city" and assured that it is a "representation of the richness of our city", with the ten districts of Barcelona present in the composition.

Visibly moved, Antoni Falgueras stated that being the speaker for La Mercè is "an unimaginable honor" and championed the role of local businesses, of which Celler de Gelida is a benchmark. "What this business has is that our customers end up being friends," he affirmed, before defining Barcelona as "a great open-air market" and defending the need to support the neighborhood's commercial fabric. In the same vein, his daughter and sommelier Meritxell Falgueras highlighted the family business's adaptability over the decades and announced that the speech will also serve to reflect on "how we have been transforming" and on the progressive disappearance of local businesses, one of the key points of the speech his father will deliver.

Shanghai, the honored guest

The city of Shanghai has been one of the main protagonists of the presentation of the new edition of La Mercè. It will be the first Asian city invited as guest of honor, coinciding with the 25th anniversary of the twinning with Barcelona. Beyond institutional recognition, this prominence will translate into an extensive cultural program with the participation of nearly 110 artists from Shanghai. "Mainly circus, dance, drone shows, pyrotechnics, and Chinese dragons that we will see at the Fòrum," detailed Collboni, who emphasized that "Chinese culture will shine at this Mercè."

The Consul General of China in Barcelona, Meng Yuhong, wanted to thank, in Catalan and Spanish, the trust and invitation from the Barcelona City Council. The diplomat highlighted that La Mercè, "guided by a spirit of inclusivity, openness, and innovation," contributes to making Barcelona "an even more vibrant city."

Among the novelties of this edition, the program of festive activities in the ten districts of the city also stands out; the premiere of the new Porta de l'Infern, which will become the starting point for the correfoc; an exhibition that will bring together all the posters of La Mercè since 1979, and a show at Park Güell that will combine music and traditional dances, in collaboration with the Department of Culture, to commemorate the Gaudí Year. All this programming will take place on the usual festival stages, to which new spaces will be added such as Plaça de les Glòries, Plaça de Sarrià, and Plaça de Comas.