The Freixenet story begins with a romance. It is a tale of the love and marriage of members of two famous wine families, a pairing which led to the establishment of Freixenet. Dolores Sala Vivé and Pedro Ferrer Bosch began producing sparkling wine in the tiny village of Sant Sadurní d’Anoian in the heart of Catalonia in 1861. The name of the couple’s company was inspired by family ties: it is derived from the name of the Ferrer family estate La Freixenada, which means ‘the farm where the ash trees grow’.
Spain was and continues to be a male-dominated wine country, but for Freixenet it was skill that made the difference as early as in the 1800s. Dolores, who was known as a skilled winemaker, worked alongside her husband, which was quite peculiar at that time.
Today, the million-dollar company continues its tradition of relying on women. Three of the four Freixenet owners are female, and the creator of the Mia family of wines is Gloria Collell, a young Catalonian woman. “I am lucky that women have an important role in the Catalonian world of wine. I admire Dolores, who continued to run the Freixenet business after Pedro fell in the Spanish civil war. She was so good at tasting wine that she could tell which vineyard had grown the grapes based on the mouth feel of the wine,” Collell says.
Heart in Catalonia Freixenet’s cava is born from the harmonious combination of three different grapes grown in Catalonia. The Parellada, Macabeo and Xarel-lo grapes all come from the Penedès area, which extends from the sea up into the high hills. “Freixenet has always strongly favoured local grapes, because our roots are important to us. These grapes come from here. They grow here and here alone.”
In recent times, however, Freixenet has broadened its horizons and taken the classic French grapes Chardonnay and Pinot Noir into its wines. “Even though our soul lies with the local varieties, this does not mean that we are not open to trying new things. The point is to expand the Freixenet wine portfolio, and new varieties of grapes make this possible.”
A modernist in the wine business, Freixenet has risen over the years from a small cava producer to a member of the upper caste of worldwide favourites. The reason probably has to do with the brand’s passionate relationship with wine, but the attitude of seeking out new things has also carried on from one generation to the next. Freixenet lauches new products regularly, some of which may even be startling. Now people believe in individuality, rose wines, premium cavas, cava cocktails and alcohol-free sparkling wine, which has long been a black sheep in the wine business. “We want to attract new people to try Freixenet, so we boldly try new things. The alcohol-free sparkling wine Freixenet Legero, for example, is made from extremely fine Moscatel grapes. When a wine is very aromatic, it withstands having the alcohol steamed off, and the end result is excellent.”
Collell’s own creation, the Mia family of wines, is an example of the significance of personification in the wine business. Freixenet is a family business for whom history, spending time together and doing things together are important. Now, however, a wine is being launched for the first time with a label that tells people about the winemaker and her motives. “This has been a very personal process, so the launch of the wine makes me nervous. But people have thought of it this way: if someone is willing to put their face on the label, the wine must be good.”
The inspiration for the wines comes from Collell’s home city of Barcelona, where new and old things, art, freedom but also tradition flourish side by side. “I wanted to offer the customers a good, clean tempranillo, because I have tasted so many bad ones. The white wine, on the other hand, is a purebred child of Catalonia, honey-flavoured and fruity filled with passion.”