The great luxury brand in Spain is celebrating.
In 2022,
on April 15, 1982
to be exact, it will be four decades since David Álvarez signed
the purchase of Vega Sicilia before a notary at the Zalacain restaurant
.
An acquisition that was reached by chance or by rebound, since Álvarez was the intermediary for the
Neumann Svaton family to sell the winery
.
After some attempts, Álvarez finally decided to buy it, despite the fact that
"the business of making great wines had never been considered
", recalls his daughter Marta Álvarez and president of Tempos Vega Sicilia, at the press conference where the acts of
celebration of this 40th anniversary
.
Four decades later, its wines have achieved the status of unique (precisely, the name of the iconic reference of the house, Único), artisans, rooted in tradition, but also in innovation and with great
international recognition, an object of desire for collectors and from the world's great auction houses
.
With work, patience and large investments, the family, led by
Pablo Álvarez (CEO)
, has turned that respected Valbuena del Duero winery, acquired in 1982, into a global brand synonymous with excellence and with more demand than supply.
It has recovered a large part of the
vineyard that Eloy Lecanda
-founder of the winery in 1864- planted at the end of the 19th century;
has created
four wineries
(Alión, Ribera de Duero; Oremus, Tokaj, Hungary; Pintia, Toro and Bodegas Benjamin de Rothschild & Vega Sicilia, Rioja)... And now he is founding a new one in Galicia,
in Rías Baixas,
with the idea of make Albariño wines.
from left
From left to right: Pablo Álvarez, Marta Álvarez and Antonio Menéndez.
Quite a
birthday present
with which they want to fulfill the dream of
"producing a great Spanish white wine"
, they say.
To do this, they will launch
Bodega y Viñedos Deiva
, which will be built in
Crecente (Pontevedra)
and will be completed in 2023. The new brand already has
24 hectares of old vineyards
-the goal is to reach 55 or 60 hectares- and land mainly in the County of Tea (upper part of the Miño);
in Salnés, around Cambados, O Grove and Sanxenxo, and also in Crecente itself.
The investment?
"About 20 million euros between the vineyard and the winery," explains
Antonio Menéndez, general manager of Tempos Vega Sicilia
.
Why Galicia and why Albariño?
"The strange thing is that it has been kept secret, because we
have been buying vineyards in that region for four or five years now
," says Pablo Álvarez.
"
For me, the Albariño is the great Spanish white, not counting Jerez
, which is something unique and unrepeatable in the world. It is a great variety that must be improved and that is the project we have: to make 300,000 good bottles, and
to you have to have a good vineyard
, which is not easy to find or buy," adds Pablo Álvarez.
Recreation of the future Albariños from Bodega y Viñedos Deiva.
For the CEO of Tempos Vega Sicilia, "the vineyard and the work we do in it are the basis of everything", a phrase that he usually repeats like a mantra.
"You are working with nature, with living beings, and for this reason,
each year is different, if you haven't been frozen, a hail has fallen on you... That is the greatness of wines
, that you don't have to be perfect to be big, just like human beings. But you have to pursue quality and work," says Álvarez.
The new winery will sign two wines:
Deiva, aged for two years
-the first vintage is scheduled for 2023 and its release on the market for 2025-, and the white, with lower production and higher price,
Arnela, which would go on sale in 2026
.
And after the announcement and the details of Bodega y Viñedos Deiva, the different acts of celebration of the 40th anniversary.
At the end of the year, they will launch
100 numbered cases with seven magnum bottles from the latest vintages
of Vega Sicilia Único and Vega Sicilia Único Reserva Especial, Valbuena, Alión, Pintia, Macán and Petracs.
On the same dates,
a book will be published in which the 40 years of the Álvarez family
at the head of Vega Sicilia are collected, edited by La Fábrica.
40th anniversary commemorative box.
A review of these four decades in which the Tempos Vega Sicilia business
has reinforced the expansion and quality of its wines
, "maintaining Vega Sicilia's historical commercial strategy, which was based on giving the
utmost care to the product, from its production to delivery to the consumer
", explains Antonio Menéndez.
And the strategy has given results: in 1982 Vega Sicilia
sold 200,000 bottles and today it produces around 1.5 million bottles
.
More data: "Turnover has moved from 1.2 million euros in 1982 to
60 million in 2021
(approximate figure) with 1.2 million bottles. 40 years ago Vega Sicilia had 2,000 clients in Spain and exported to five countries
Today there are 3,700 customers
,
we cannot have more due to the scarcity of the product, and we
export to 150 nations.In
1982 sales were concentrated in Spain (nearly 90%), while today 70% of the group's sales are made outside of our country", details Antonio Menéndez.
Past, present and a future in which they do not rule out "continuing to grow not only in Spain, but also internationally", concludes Pablo Álvarez.
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