This morning, INCAVI – the Catalan Government’s public institution dedicated to vineyards and wine and to providing the Catalan wine-making sector with more and better strategic tools – presented the international website catalanwines.com to raise the profile of Catalan wines at the ProWein Düsseldorf fair, the wine sector’s main fair in Europe, where a large number of Catalan wineries are present.

The website aims to be the gateway to the end consumer both nationally and internationally. In this first phase, the website promotes Catalan wine making and its links with the region and its people. The information, available in Catalan, Spanish and English, has been drawn up in collaboration with the Catalan Designation of Origin system, the Wine Culture Museum of Catalonia (VINSEUM) and the Catalan Tourist Board.

The history section offers a summary of the evolution of vineyards and wine in what is now Catalonia, with 12 chronological milestones beginning with the archaeological site of Font de la Canya, where carbonised seeds were found that allow us to date back more than 2,700 years of wine growing in the country, and end at the present day, when the country is producing its best wines ever.This journey through time focuses on the role of people in the different adaptations that the sector has undergone in these more than 2,700 years of wine-growing culture.

The section on Designations of Origin emphasises the link between the production of quality wines and the regions, through the 12 DOs that make up the current system. This section offers all the information related to Certified Single-Vineyard Wines – those wines that have been recognised by the Government of Catalonia for their expressiveness of the vineyard’s particular terroir. In this first phase, the section on wineries highlights the heritage asset that is the country’s wineries and the work of winegrowers, generation after generation.

In collaboration with the Catalan Tourist Board, this first phase of catalanwines.com shows the nine wine routes that Catalonia currently has as a way to bring visitors into contact with vineyards and wineries. This information will soon be extended with more information on the other wine tourism options available.

The presentation was attended by the Managing Director of PRODECA, Ramon Sentmartí, as well as the managers of the Catalan wineries participating in the Espai Catalunya at the ProWein fair, who highlighted the importance and value of this tool and, in particular, the possibility of making it grow through the contributions and requirements of the sector.

Outstanding participation of Catalan wineries at ProWein 2023

Catalan wines have had a strong presence during ProWein 2023, with the participation of more than 125 Catalan wineries from Catalonia’s 12 recognised Designations of Origin, 90 of which (as well as four wine associations) fall under the agri-food brand “Catalunya, where wine is culture”, created by the Ministry of Climate Action, Food and Rural Agenda and PRODECA. This year, PRODECA is celebrating 20 years of Catalan wines at ProWein Düsseldorf.

ProWein is Europe’s most prestigious wine trade fair, with around 6,000 international exhibitors and an estimated visitor attendance of over 60,000 buyers. The fair is aimed exclusively at professional visitors from sectors including catering services, hotels, restaurants, wine and spirits shops, wholesale and retail shops, import and export and internet sales.