Cava (Spanish wine)

Cava(Catalan:[ˈkaβə],pl.caves;Spanish:[ˈkaβa],pl.cavas) is asparkling wineofdenominación de origen(DO) status fromSpain. It may bewhite(blanco) orrosé(rosado). TheMacabeo,ParelladaandXarel·loare the most popular and traditionalgrape varietiesfor producing cava.Chardonnay and Malvasia are also permitted. Authorized red grapes are Garnacha tinta, Monastrell, Trepat, and Pinot Noir. Only wines produced in thetraditional methodmay be labelled "cava"; those produced by other processes may only be called "sparkling wines" (vinos espumosos). About 95% of all cava is produced in thePenedèsarea inCatalonia,Spain, with the village ofSant Sadurní d'Anoiabeing home to many of the largest Catalan production houses.The two major producers areCodorníuandFreixenet. Cava is also produced in other villages in the provinces ofGirona,Lleida,Tarragona, andBarcelonain Catalonia,ZaragozainAragon,BadajozinExtremadura,La Rioja,Araba/Álavain theBasque Country,NavarraandValènciain theValencian Community.
Marketing cava as "Spanish champagne" is no longer permitted underEuropean Union law, sinceChampagnehas aprotected geographical status(PGS). Colloquially it is still calledchampánorchampañainSpanishorchampúinArgentinian SpanishxampanyinCatalan.Today it is defined by law as a "quality sparkling wine produced in a designated region" (Vino Espumoso de Calidad Producido en una Región Determinada, VECPRD).
The wordchampánin Spanish is not to be confused withachampañado, a colloquial term for the non-traditional sparkling wines. Theseachampañadoswines are generally cheaper, are served by the bottle at bars or restaurants specializing in them and hence these establishments are called by the same name, i.e.achampañado. This is not cava, but it is a somewhat popular drink as well.
TheSpanishwordcava(pl.:cavas) means "cave" or "cellar", as caves were used in the early days of cava production for the preservation oraging of wine.Spanish winemakers officially adopted the term in 1970 to distinguish their product from French champagne.
Catalan sparkling wine was first made as early as 1851,while the roots of the cava industry can be traced back to Josep Raventós's travels through Europe in the 1860s, where he was promoting the still wines of the Codorníu Winery. His visits to theChampagne wine regionsparked an interest in the potential of a Spanish wine made using the same traditional method. He created his first sparkler in 1872, after the vineyards of Penedès were devastated by thephylloxeraplague, and the predominantly red vines were being replaced by large numbers of vines producing white grapes.
Catalan cava producers pioneered a significant technological development insparkling wine productionwith the invention of thegyropallet, a large mechanized device that replaced hand riddling, in which theleesare consolidated in the neck of the bottle prior to disgorgement and corking.In the 21st century it started its international expansion, being exported to several economies.
According to Spanish law, cava may be produced inCatalonia.ThePenedès wine regionwhere most cava is produced is located in Catalonia. Cava is also produced in other villages inAragon,Castile and León,Extremadura,la Rioja,Basque Country,NavarreandValencia.
To makerosécava, blending is not allowed. The wine must be made viasaignéemethod usinggarnacha,pinot noir,trepatormonastrell. Besidesmacabeu,parellada, andxarel·lo, cava may also containchardonnay,pinot noirandsubiratgrapes.The first cava to use chardonnay was produced in 1981.Like any other quality sparkling wine, cava is produced in varying levels ofsweetness, ranging from the dryest, brut nature, through brut, brut reserve, seco, semiseco, to dulce, the sweetest.