Marla González interviews Norrel Robertson for La Vanguardia newspaper.
What an absolute pleasure to be asked to participate in this interview with sommelier Marla González.
Through thoughtful questioning, the core message that Marla gets from Norrel is that he believes Spain has an extraordinary winemaking heritage, but unless old vineyards remain economically viable and wine culture continues to evolve, the country risks losing one of its greatest agricultural and cultural assets. His main points are:
Spain produces some of the world’s highest-quality wines, thanks to its diverse climates, soils, and native grape varieties.
Many old and remote vineyards are being abandoned because they are expensive to maintain and no longer profitable. Robertson sees this as a major loss of cultural and agricultural heritage.
Wine consumption in Spain has fallen, particularly among younger generations. However, he believes that the people who continue to drink wine tend to choose better-quality wines instead of simply buying more.
Spain has gained a strong international reputation for small producers, old vines, and wines that express their local terroir, but Robertson believes Spanish wines are still underrepresented in restaurants abroad compared with French and Italian wines.
He argues that the industry’s future depends less on producing larger volumes and more on preserving vineyards, supporting rural communities, and focusing on quality and authenticity.
You can read the full article, in Spanish, here