Romania's leading wine producer and eporter, Cramele Recas, has announced a "strategic partnership" with Tenuta Odobești, located in the Vrancea region. This announcement was initially made through a press release in Romanian for the local market. British-born Philip Cox, co-owner and CEO of Cramele Recas, informed our German sister publication Weinwirtschaft that the company has acquired a 50% stake in Tenuta Odobești. The Odobești winery was established 15 years ago by Italian Fabrizio Mosconi who will retain the remaining shares and continue to manage the operational side during the 2024 harvest. The existing team at Odobești will also remain in place.
Cox explained that Odobești has been producing bulk wine and must for Cramele Recas for years, under the supervision of Recas winemakers Elena Alejos and Matteo Lappi. Since 2022, however, Tenuta Odobești has also gained recognition for its traditional method sparkling wines, with support from Italian winemaker Marco Zizioli, a member of the Technical-Scientific Committee of the Franciacorta Consortium. Cramele Recas aims to respond to the growing demand from Romanian customers for sparkling wine with this investment. Additionally, expansion into the Vrancea region has become necessary for further growth, as no more vineyard land is available in their home region of Recas (Banat). Until now, Cramele Recas managed 1,250ha/3,000ac of their own vineyards, supplemented by 2,500/6,000ac hectares from contract growers in Vrancea, where they will now also have access to their own vineyard land.
Cox also mentioned that Cramele Recas has invested in expanding Odobești’s production capacity by an additional 3m litres, bringing the total to 7m litres for the 2024 harvest. Furthermore, a new fully automated bottling line will be operational at Cramele Recas by March 2025, with a capacity to fill approximately 13,000 bottles per hour. This upgrade will enable the production of up to 45m bottles annually. Additionally, investments have been made in must-cooling capacity, with an additional 800,000 litres of tank volume, and a new bottle storage facility that can hold around 8m bottles. The total investment amounts to approximately €12m. Cramele Recas aims to increase its revenue from €72m in 2023 to €100m in the mid-term. VM
