Freixenet

Freixenet have been producing quality Spanish sparkling wines since 1911, when the marriage of Dolores Sala Vive (granddaughter of the founder of Casa Salsa) and Pedro Ferrer-Bosch (of the La Freixeneda family) in Catalunya sparked the birth of the Freixenet story; and the newlyweds soon went into business together.

With a bumpy start due to a disease ruining grapevines across Europe, the couple began to lookfor another route, sparkling wine produced in the traditional method proved an attractive alternative for the Ferrer-Bosches, who quickly changed the direction of the business and the business was booming by 1915. The couple built new cellars in response to growing demand for their rather wonderful sparkling wine, and enjoyed growing success in Spain and abroad over the next few years.

However the 1920s marked a turning point for Freixenet, as the terrible loss of Pedro and the couple’s eldest son saw Dolores take the lead. During her time at the helm she tutored her children in all aspects of the business until the time came for her 22 year old son Jose to start his career. Smart, snappy and charismatic, Jose had not only grown the company to become the world’s leading producer of quality sparkling wine by the mid 1980s, but also changed the way the Spanish cava industry works forever.

Jose was also the brainbox behind Freixenet’s ingenious marketing and advertising during this period; not only masterminding that iconic frosted black bottle, but also driving the brand to become one of the early adopters of TV advertising. Today, the Freixenet Christmas advert is one of the most eagerly awaited events of the Spanish TV advertising calendar. By the year 2000, total production exceeded a whopping 200 million bottles, and accounted for over half of all Spanish sparkling wine production. With Jose now semi-retired , his son Pedro now leads the charge, and continues to realise the vision his grandparents had for the Freixenet brand all those years ago in Catalunya.