The Supreme Court does not accept the objection raised by the Protected Designation of Origin (DOP) Java for processing. It is controlled by wineries in Catalonia, and it was the intention that the Valencian production area of this sparkling wine would not be identified as Cava de Requena. As a result, the regulatory council is urged to promptly amend the specifications to recognize the Requena cava production area. Wineries from Valencia such as Carrascal Huts, Coviñas, Hispano Swiss, Pago de Tharsys, UVE, Torre Oria, and Dominio de la Vega are expected to produce about 14 million bottles this year, reflecting an increase of nearly 4% from the previous year.
The resolution stands firm, and so does the right of Requena producers to determine, in the best interest of consumers, the origin of the cava they produce. Reports from the Requena Cava Producers Association note that in 1990 Requena filed a lawsuit with the Supreme Court. At that time, when the Cava region was delimited following its entry into the European Economic Community, Requena was excluded as a producing area. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Requena, since the sparkling wine regulatory council had, at that moment, already recognized Torre Oria as a cava producer and registered it in the corresponding register. Requena was already part of the evolving Cava landscape.
source from department
In 2020, the decision was made to identify distinct cava-producing areas, but the Regulatory Council did not find it appropriate to acknowledge Requena as a descriptor for cava produced there due to potential confusion with the Utiel-Requena DOP. The association argued that for the average consumer, labeling cava from Requena with a different name would undermine the long years of effort to build the Requena cava brand.
Faced with this view, several parties proposed alternatives. The Valencia Department of Agriculture, the Requena Cava Producers Association, and Dominio de la Vega, a private winery, along with its partners, had already lobbied for the Requena name in 1990 when it was Torre Oria. In recent membership elections for the Javanese DOP, Dominio de la Vega secured a seat in the plenary session representing vintners. The regulatory council, historically led largely by Catalan and French producers, has not had long-standing representation from other regions. This event marked the first time a non-Catalan producer presented cava-related concerns to the DOP and sought collaborative, practical solutions for the industry.
In the first ruling, the Supreme Court of Justice favored the three appellants, finding no confusion between the name CAVA and Utiel-Requena. The evidence indicated that there had been no confusion among consumers for forty years, and the Requena cava production area deserved recognition.
outside Catalonia
At the only meeting of the Javanese organizing council held outside Catalonia, Almendralejo supported appealing the Madrid Supreme Court decision. As of November 16, the case was noted on November 20, with the court deciding not to entertain a challenge for failure to meet statutory requirements. While the preliminary documents did not expose any error in the High Court of Justice’s decision, the formalities needed to raise preliminary questions were met, and the European Court of Justice was cited by the appellant.
Fernando Medina: “The decision should not alter the efforts of all General Assembly members toward honoring and publicizing the importance of the Requena cava name.”
A new phase
Dominio de la Vega, SL hopes to conclude a phase marked by strong debate among the General Assembly of the Javanese DOP and the association’s representatives. Fernando Medina notes: “The decision should not dampen the efforts of all members toward giving prestige to the cava name, a product of exceptional quality, and to the production area, which is the result of a deliberate zoning effort aimed at enhancing its image and standing.”