– After meeting with each of the associations that make up the Plenary of the Council, the winemaker has been chosen by the sector for the next term, which will last four years.
– 3 associations of cooperatives, 5 agricultural organizations, and 4 organizations from the winery sector will make up the Plenary of the Regulatory Council of the DOCa with 32 members.
– The appointment of Pérez Cuevas, president of the Grupo Rioja association, is part of the year celebrating the centenary of the DOCa and marks a milestone as she becomes the first woman to preside over the Regulatory Council.
– The new president takes office with an integrative leadership based on cohesion and dialogue, with the aim of restoring balance in the Denomination, boosting demand with a focus on quality, and promoting the diversity of Rioja wines at both national and international levels.
June 24, the new board members who will represent the wine production and marketing sector of Rioja for the next four years have taken office, and the appointment of the positions of the Board of Directors of the Interprofessional Organization of Rioja Wine (OIPVR) has been formalized. Thus, and in accordance with the provisions of the Statutes of the Regulatory Council of the Qualified Designation of Origin Rioja, the Plenary of this body is formally constituted with the same composition. In this way, Raquel Pérez Cuevas assumes the presidency of the Council and the Interprofessional for the next four years following the vote of the 32 members representing the sector, that is, the 3 cooperative associations, 5 agricultural organizations, and 4 organizations from the winery sector, with the support of 99% of the votes cast.
New President Raquel Pérez Cuevas
Therefore, the term of Fernando Ezquerro concludes, who has held the position for the last four years and whose presidency has been marked by notable advances in sustainability, a focus on national and international promotion, as well as the drive for strategic initiatives aimed at balancing the sector and wine tourism. Ezquerro becomes the first vice president of the OIPVR, which is also completed with Begoña Jiménez Díaz (ABC) as the second vice president, Alejandro Las Heras Pérez (ARAG-ASAJA) as secretary, and Javier Ruiz de Galarreta San Vicente (ARAEX) as treasurer.
The appointment of Raquel Pérez Cuevas coincides with a significant year for DOCa Rioja, which in 2025 celebrates its Centennial, thereby reaffirming its position as the first Designation of Origin in Spain and one of the most prestigious internationally. In this context, Pérez Cuevas’s accession to the position becomes noteworthy as she becomes the first woman to assume the presidency of the Regulatory Council of the Designation.
New President Raquel Pérez Cuevas (left)
Previous President Fernando Ezquerro (right)
With an extensive career in the wine sector and linked from its origins to the family project Ontañón, Raquel Perez Cuevas embodies a new generation of winemakers with extensive training and preparation.
Agricultural Engineer from the Public University of Navarra and graduate in Oenology from the University of La Rioja, she complemented her education with postgraduate studies in wine marketing and management in Paris and Navarra, as well as an Executive MBA at the Pontifical University of Comillas. Her trilingual profile (Spanish, English, and French) and her international experience enhance her ability to lead one of the most international sectors of the Spanish agri-food economy.
Pérez Cuevas has received multiple recognitions throughout his career, such as the Mercurio Executive Award (2018), the “World Leader in Wine” award granted by the Government of China (2014), and the Businesswoman of La Rioja award on two occasions.
During the event held this morning at the headquarters of the Regulatory Council, which was attended by the Government Delegate, Beatriz Arraiz, and the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural World, and Environment, Noemí Manzanos, a tribute was paid to all the members of the last term, congratulating the new ones. The newly appointed president, for her part, has expressed her willingness to exercise an inclusive leadership: “I have met, I have spoken, and more importantly, I have listened to all the associations of our Plenary. I know, we all know, that it is not an easy time, which is why I assume this presidency with even greater responsibility. Pérez Cuevas added: “It is important for me to be able to continue counting on all of you in this new stage, where I would like to see dialogue, involvement, debate, unity—which is not the same as uniformity—loyalty to the Denomination that has made us who we are, and the best of your intentions so that Rioja continues to occupy the place it deserves in the world of wine.”
In her speech, the new president also highlighted the importance of the Qualified Designation of Origin Rioja for the region and for the Spanish wine sector as a whole, as well as for the Spain Brand, and she thanked the former presidents Fernando Ezquerro and Fernando Salamero and her colleagues in the sector for the trust placed in her. “Our work starts today.” “We have exciting years ahead of us, and one of the most beautiful and solid projects in the world of wine,” concluded Pérez Cuevas.
Since the official constitution of the first Regulatory Council on January 11, 1927, under the presidency of Enrique Herreros de Tejada, president of the Provincial Council of Logroño, the position of president has been held by Antonio Larrea Redondo (1945-1971), Eugenio Narvaiza Arregui (1971-1982), Santiago Coello Cuadrado (1982-1992), Angel de Jaime Baró (1992-2004), Víctor Pascual Artacho (2004-2013), Luis Alberto Lecea Blanco (2013-2015), José María Daroca Rubio (2015-2017), Fernando Salamero (2017-2021), and Fernando Ezquerro (2021-2025).
