22 · MONEY
ISSUE 56
COVER STORY
A Premium Taste of Time MONEY speaks to Jeremy Cassar, chief executive officer of Marsovin, about what it takes for a winery in Malta to lead the pack and remain creative in an industry that is thousands of years old. Marsovin has been in business since 1919. What explains your longevity? Our focus is always to do better. Never satisfied with just doing ‘enough’, we strive to keep producing better wines. As a 100-yearold, family-run business, every generation works hard to maintain and improve upon previous successes. My main goal is to eventually pass on the baton in an even better state than when I received it. It’s not always easy and it takes determination. My great-grandfather, Anthony Cassar, founded Marsovin after World War I. He achieved tremendous amounts at a trying time, and he continued working throughout World War II when many
businesses faced closure. But he emerged from the war as the largest producer and distributor of wine in Malta. Well-taken decisions play a significant part, too. In our generation, post-EU accession was a difficult period for the wine sector in Malta. But, ploughing ahead makes you stronger, so you can ride the wave when the good times come. I am enjoying the stage we’re at as a winery because old ideas are coming to fruition. We have an outstanding technical team but, most importantly, we are a group of like-minded individuals with a shared passion. And, behind it all is a family that loves what we have done and what we continue to do.
What sets you apart from other local winemakers? Putting oneself in the context of other businesses is useful, but self-reflection and following your own dream are vital. Our standards are not set by the national standard; we set our own. We have an extensive range of wines that have resulted from thorough planning and experimentation. For example, we’re the only Maltese wine producer using the méthode traditionnelle for our Brut called Cassar de Malte. And, we’ve been using this method for 20 years. We also use indigenous varieties of grapes. For our Primus boutique wine, we sun dry – rather than cold dry – indigenous ġellewża grapes. We’re the first winery to explore this unique winemaking concept using local Maltese varieties. Primus has received a lot of praise, and we are proud of what we have achieved using the indigenous ġellewża. My father instilled this commitment to quality and the ‘less is more’ approach at the winery. Ultimately, our results speak for themselves. When you treat a winery as a commercial entity, you’ll do a decent job with results that are good enough. But we put a lot of heart into what we do, and our passion, dedication and innovation produce unique results of premium quality. Winemaking has been around for thousands of years. Is there still room for creativity? To remain true to the culture of wine, not
