Spain seems to have got off lightly once again. The rainfall at the beginning of mid-September spared most appellations, particularly in the north. At the beginning of September, forecasts were still predicting a historically small harvest.
The 2022 wine harvest in Spain is below the yield of the previous year. However, individual regions were able to harvest significantly more grapes than in 2021, as can be seen from figures published in the Spanish trade medium "La Semana Vitivinícola " and on the website sevi.net.
The dispute over the Basque part of Rioja, the "Rioja Alavesa", continues following the Basque regional government approval of the DO "Arabako Mahastiak - Viñedos de Álava". The Basques have a strong argument: higher quality standards.
In these times, it becomes almost the rule that heat, drought, hail or storms threaten the grapes. Nevertheless, the yield forecasts in Europe are different this year, as the examples of France and Spain show.
Spain’s Transformation: Sherpa Capital launches €25million equity investment in bid to transform the Spanish wine sector following acquisition of the insolvent, fraudulent company Reserva de la Tierra. Barnaby Eales reports.
In October 2021, the Catalan group "Reserva de la Tierra" was suspected of putting wines with fake DO seals into circulation. According to current media reports, 40 million bottles worth about 14.2 million euro are affected by the fraud - significantly more than previously assumed. The insolvent company has been bought by the private equity firm Sherpa Capital.
The Rioja classification system has tradition and determines marketing. Ever cheaper Reservas, however, are causing criticism and fueling doubts about the traditional model. David Schwarzwälder reports.
