Spain's wine export sector faced a challenging year in 2025, recording declines in both value and volume amid a difficult international trading environment.
According to data from the Spanish Tax Agency analyzed by the Spanish Wine Interprofessional Organization (OIVE), exports of wine, aromatized wines, grape must, and vinegar totaled EUR 3.45 billion and 2.68 billion liters, representing decreases of 1.7% in value and 1.8% in volume compared to 2024.
While the overall figures point to a modest contraction, the results varied significantly across Spain's wine-producing regions and provinces. Some areas strengthened their international presence and increased export revenues, while others experienced substantial losses as global demand softened and competition intensified.
Castilla-La Mancha Consolidates Its Leadership
Castilla-La Mancha maintained its position as Spain's leading wine-exporting region, accounting for more than half of the country's total export volume and over a quarter of export value.
The region generated EUR 950.5 million in export revenue, an increase of 5.6% compared to the previous year, while export volumes reached 1.4 billion liters. Although shipments declined slightly by 0.8%, Castilla-La Mancha successfully increased the value of its exports, adding more than EUR 50 million in revenue.
The region's dominance reflects its vast vineyard area, competitive production costs, and strong presence in bulk wine exports, which continue to play a major role in Spain's international wine trade.
Catalonia Faces Significant Challenges
Catalonia remained Spain's second-largest wine-exporting region by value, generating EUR 592.8 million in sales. However, the region experienced one of the sharpest declines among major exporters, with revenue falling by 7.5%.
Export volumes also decreased significantly, dropping 10.3% to 165.3 million liters. Despite these declines, Catalonia maintained one of the highest average export prices in Spain at EUR 3.59 per liter, reflecting the importance of premium wine categories and sparkling wines in its export portfolio.
The reduction of EUR 48 million in export revenue represented the largest absolute decline among all Spanish regions during 2025.
Valencia Emerges as One of the Year's Success Stories
The Valencian Community delivered one of the strongest performances in Spain's wine export sector during 2025.
Exports reached EUR 355.3 million, an increase of 8.5%, while shipment volumes grew by an impressive 9.1% to 381.3 million liters. The region added nearly 32 million liters to its export volume, the largest increase recorded by any Spanish autonomous community.
This growth highlights Valencia's ability to expand its presence in international markets and capitalize on demand for competitively priced Spanish wines.
La Rioja Experiences a Difficult Year
One of Spain's most internationally recognized wine regions, La Rioja, faced a challenging export environment in 2025.
Export revenues fell by 13.3% to EUR 283.7 million, while volumes declined by 16.7% to 83.8 million liters. Together with Catalonia and Madrid, La Rioja contributed significantly to the overall national decline in wine exports.
The downturn reflects the broader pressures affecting premium wine segments globally, including inflation, changing consumer habits, and weaker demand in several key export markets.
Provincial Leaders Drive National Exports
At the provincial level, Ciudad Real once again emerged as Spain's leading wine-exporting province.
The province generated EUR 557.9 million in export revenue and shipped more than 801 million liters of wine products abroad. These figures represent increases of 9.5% in value and 4.9% in volume, making Ciudad Real responsible for nearly 30% of Spain's total wine export volume.
Barcelona remained second in export value despite a decline in sales, while Valencia strengthened its position as the country's second-largest exporting province by volume, reaching nearly 260 million liters.
Other key exporting provinces included Murcia, Toledo, Cuenca, and Albacete, although several of these regions experienced varying degrees of volume contraction during the year.
Regional Winners and Losers
While several regions struggled, others managed to deliver positive results. Extremadura, Castile and León, Andalusia, Murcia, and Asturias all reported increases in export revenues compared to 2024.
On the other hand, Madrid recorded one of the steepest declines, losing EUR 16.3 million in export value and more than 11 million liters in shipment volume. Aragón, Navarre, the Basque Country, and several northern regions also faced reductions in both value and volume.
These contrasting performances illustrate the increasingly fragmented nature of international wine markets, where regional competitiveness, product mix, and pricing strategies play a crucial role in determining success.
Outlook for Spanish Wine Exports
Although Spain's wine exports declined slightly in 2025, the overall contraction remained relatively modest considering the difficult global market conditions. Wine producers worldwide continue to face challenges including inflationary pressures, declining consumption in mature markets, geopolitical uncertainty, and changing consumer preferences.
The strong performances of Castilla-La Mancha, Valencia, and several emerging exporting regions demonstrate that opportunities for growth still exist. Going forward, Spanish producers are likely to focus increasingly on value creation, market diversification, premiumization, and strengthening their presence in fast-growing international markets.
As global wine trade continues to evolve, Spain's ability to balance volume leadership with higher-value exports will remain critical to maintaining its position among the world's leading wine-exporting nations.
Source: Vinetur