Miguel A. Torres (Torres Family): “Our winery will continue to be a family business.”

The wine world faces several challenges: climate change, declining alcohol consumption, tariffs in the United States... How does Familia Torres stand in the face of these challenges?

Torres navigates these diverse situations. When my father left a Nationalist concentration camp in 1939, he arrived at the winery and found it bombed. Imagine the situation. Throughout its history, the company has endured difficult times and has always carried on. In any case, the group is financially sound. Last year we had a turnover of more than €242 million and grew by 6%. And this year it's doing equally well. We're helped by tourism in Spain and exports, with new markets we're working on. We're moderately optimistic. What we're concerned about is climate change.

How has the drought of recent years affected you?

2023 was terrible, and the Penedès region lost a significant portion of its grape harvest. 2024 was better, and 2025 saw rain in spring, so we'll save it this year. We're installing irrigation on every vineyard we can. The Generalitat (Catalan regional government) is facilitating the creation of an irrigation community in the Penedès region and the use of reclaimed water for irrigation. Looking ahead, there's talk of installing a desalination plant to bring water from the Mediterranean to the Penedès region. With rising temperatures, grapes ripen earlier, but then lose quality elements, such as aromas and tannins, which require colder nights. Irrigation helps ensure this ripening doesn't happen so early.

How do they adapt to changes in consumer habits?

We were pioneers, thanks to my daughter Mireia, in bringing a dealcohol-free wine to the market. We called it Natureo, a name coined by my son Miquel. Sales are increasing, and we're now going to invest 6 million to build and launch a new non-alcoholic wine cellar. That said, I believe that people continue and will continue to drink wine with alcohol, but always in moderation.

Are you exposed to US tariffs?

Very little. The United States isn't a big market for us, accounting for only 3% of our exports. There, we've focused on high-end products; we want to be in restaurants and hotels, and later, in supermarkets. In contrast, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada represent large markets for the group. Our first country in brandy is Mexico, although there it's consumed with soft drinks. The Nordic countries and China also represent a significant portion of sales. We have a presence in more than 100 countries, ten wineries, and in Chile, we see a great future with the winery we have there. We already have 350 hectares of vineyards there. In Spain, we have 1,100 hectares of our own vineyards and work with 1,100 employees.

You are a great defender of the environment. What drives you to get involved in the fight against climate change?

In 2008, my wife and I watched Al Gore's documentary An Inconvenient Truth , and it truly impacted me. My family lives off the land, and we had to do something. From there, we began designing the Torres & Earth program, which has three aspects: adaptation, buying vineyards further north, installing irrigation, or changing viticulture methods; mitigation, with a concrete plan that we are implementing and with which we have already managed to reduce emissions by 40%; and finally, influencing third parties. Six years ago, together with another family winery in California, we launched an association called International Wineries for Climate Action, with producers concerned about climate change and eager to take action. We now have 170 members from around the world. In total, Familia Torres has invested 23 million in climate change-related actions since 2008.

Are governments taking sufficient measures to combat the climate emergency?

The government needs to support electric cars more. And raise gasoline taxes. I understand, however, that these are difficult decisions.

What do you think about the expansion of Barcelona airport?

As a business owner, I think it's positive for the economy. As someone concerned about the environment, I trust they can relocate the affected part of the ecosystem to another location and continue to reproduce that environment.

You've mentioned retiring before. When will that happen?

Well, it's a gradual process. Now I come to work in the mornings, and in the afternoons I usually stay home to read, play sports, spend time with my wife and grandchildren...

Will your son, Miquel Torres Maczassek, finally take over as executive president?

I have three children, Ana, Mireia, and Miquel. Currently, Mireia [who heads the Innovation and Knowledge department of Familia Torres and the Jean Leon winery] is taking on more responsibilities within the company. Miquel and I continue to speak daily and look for ways for him to rejoin the company after his time away. Ana is a doctor; she's not involved in the business, but she's part of the family board. We also count on the collaboration of my niece Marta.

Will Torres remain a family business?

Yes, definitely. They used to say we were three big names in the Penedès. They called us La Trinca, and we were very close friends: Magí Raventós, José Luis Bonet, and I. And we, Familia Torres, will continue as a family business, God willing.

What do you want Torres to be like in 20, 30 years?

I'm confident that within 20 years, we'll have achieved carbon neutrality, championing sustainability in the sector. Our primary concern has always been the quality of our wines and spirits, and it will continue to be so in the future, although we will have to adapt to maintain it. What I'm clear about is that we will preserve our essence as a family winery.