Promoting Diversity & Personality w/ María del Yerro and Enrique Valero, Grandes Pagos de España

With the aim of safeguarding the wines of personality from special vineyards (or “pagos”) from across Spain, the Grandes Pagos de España is a private group of wineries on the forefront of Spanish wine. President María del Yerro, of Alonso del Yerro, and VP Enrique Valero, CEO of Abadía Retuerta, discuss the history, objectives, how to join, and their new Terroir Workshop Series.  Detailed Show Notes: María’s background - was a translator, husband took over family winery in Rioja, 2002 - bought a 56ha vineyard and started Alonso del YerroEnrique’s background - worked at Diageo and Gonzales Byass, became CEO of Abadía RetuertaGrandes Pagos de España (“GPE”) history2000 - 5 wineries established Grand Pagos de Castilla2003 - included other wineries from Spain and renamed to GPE35 wineries, all single vineyardsPago is defined like “terroir”, a vineyard with different characteristicsCommon Goal: produce exceptional wines that reflect unique terroirInspired by VDP and French concept of Grand Cru, but adapted to Spanish contextGoals & Objectives of GPEPromote and safeguard “diversity and personality” of winesFoster research and innovationConduct educational and promotional activitiesCriteria for joiningMost wineries apply to be a memberCriteria - single vineyard, 100% estate fruit, min 5 years of internationally recognized quality, must pass internal tasting committee that assesses the personality of the vineyardMost vineyards ~50-75haSome wineries may produce wines that are not Grand PagosMember benefits and requirementsFees based on quota system by # of bottles produced (3 levels - <40k, 40-150k, >150k bottles), no winery is >500k bottlesNetworking w/ other wineries; e.g. - winemakers meet 2x / year to share learningsPromotion of wines domestically & internationally (e.g. - wine fairs, education)No logo on labelPriority marketsSpain is the primary market4 international focuses - USA (include for broader influence of press and blogs), Mexico, UK, SwitzerlandGPE wines at least 4-5x more expensive than avg price of Spanish wine (~$40-300/bottle in the US)Wine tourism program - many GPE wineries will showcase other GPE wineries in their tastingsKPIs for GPE include # of people at events, PR/comms results, results of last 10 years of new applicant tastingsMarketing GPEBuilding CRM of trade / sommeliers from tastings to keep in touchPartner w/ wine influencers, somms, other associationsHighest impact initiatives: US - big tastings; Spain - tastings w/ sommsLaunching a new Terroir Workshop SeriesMain push for the next 3-5 yearsGlobal education program for concept of pagos and 35 GPE wineriesStarting in US, Mexico3 brand ambassadors chosen and trained - help bring a 3rd party voice and local perspective on GPEPartnered w/ Gregory + Vine - helped clarify messaging and identified brand ambassadorsDesigned primarily for wine tradeNext priorities for GPEClimate changeGlobal competition - need to maintain a high reputationSustainability and social responsibility Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.