Muscàndia leaves DO Cava and reinvents itself as Viader

Muscàndia, a winery in Alt Penedès, has taken a momentous turn in its short history. Starting this year, the winery leaves the Cava Designation of Origin and adopts a new name: Viader. This change, according to its owner, Eduard Viader, who made his first sparkling wine in Muscàndia in 2010, symbolises "a renewed commitment to authenticity, territory and artisanal excellence."

The decision to leave the DO Cava for this small winery comes on the heels of other much more high-profile cases in recent years, such as Pepe Raventós or all the Corpinnat and Clàssic Penedès wineries, which, among other things, sought greater control over their production and an identity more closely linked to the territory. In this context, Viader follows this line by prioritising an artisanal and sustainable approach.

According to Eduard Viader, leaving the DO is a necessary step to guarantee quality and transparency. "We want to emphasise the value of the whole process we do at home, from the work in the vineyard, the manual harvest, the pressing of the whole grapes and the vinification. This is impossible for me in DO Cava because there is so much volume at a low price. In fact, a third of the cava produced is private labels,\" explains Viader, who since 2021 has been making his wines at Can Rossell de la Llena, an derelict farmhouse surrounded by vineyards that he bought and restored in 2020 in Gelida, near Sant Sadurní.

Viader defines himself by his motto: "The strength of being small" (El valor de ser petits) and claims that the path of quality is the only viable one. "I believe that for the Penedès to move forward we have to provide more information to the consumer; they must know exactly where the grapes come from, who produces them, etc. Cava has taken steps in this direction, but this past year it has also taken a step backwards with the admission of grapes that are not suitable for the guaranteed reserve. In short, they are meant for volume," says Viader.

The estate currently produces around 50,000 bottles a year, with markets ranging from Spain to a dozen foreign countries, including Belgium, Denmark, Canada and the United States. Viader maintains that leaving the DO Cava does not mean that they are going to partner with other groups. "At the moment we are not joining any other associations, but I haven't ruled anything out either."

Viader, 37, is an agronomist by training and works organically with the traditional Penedès varieties plus some Pinot Noir, always with disgorging and manual stirring. He also makes three still wines, including two parcels of Garnacha and Xarel.lo respectively, and a rare blend of Muscat de Frontignan and Sauvignon Blanc. All of them are under the DO Penedès.