Cava - Spanish Sparkling Wine
The culture in Spain is truly unique in every sense of the word. The Spanish
have many festivals and traditions that are not found anywhere else. One
interesting fact about Spanish people is that they drink lots of sparkling wine
during their holidays. It kind of makes sense since sparkling wine is primarily
a celebration drink. But while everywhere else it's served as an aperitif in
Spain they serve it after dinner and it's usually paired with Spanish sweets.
Spanish sparkling wine is traditionally called Cava. While Champagne is
Champagne because it's made in Champagne, Cava is Cava because the cellar in
which you make Cava is called a cava. Of the many producers of sparkling wine in
Spain the ones that come to mind first are Codorniu, Sant Sadurni d'Anoia and
Freixenet.Production of Cava
Cava is produced using the "Champagne method". As you know sparkling wine gets
it's sparkle from the bubbles. Here is how they get there. First of all a white
wine is produced. This wine is a blend of a few wine types. While in Champagne
Chardonnay is almost exclusively used, in Spain they use a blend of Xarello,
Macabeo and Parellada.
After this the blended wine is bottled and yeast
and sugar are added. The relationship between them is that yeast turns sugar
into carbon dioxide. This is called secondary fermentation. The process lasts
for about 9 months and is done in the cava (or cool cellar).
During this
secondary fermentation the bottles are occasionally turned. This causes the
residue from the yeast to stockpile at the neck of the bottle. So the bottle
gets its neck frozen, the sediment is forced out and then the bottle is
re-corked. The result is a clean, fresh and amazing sparkling wine.Quality
of Cava
As of 1991 the European Union decided to implement some specifications to ensure
some form of consistent quality from Cava. This also means that the European
Union recognized the quality and origin of Cava. In turn there are very few
producers of true Cava outside of Catalonia. For one to recognize a true cava
one need only look for a star with 4 corners located on the base of the cork.
Based on the sugar content in the wine, there are six recognized types
of Cava. Extra Brut is the driest of the Cava. A sugar content of 0-6 grams of
sugar per litre. Next is Brut, it's sugar content ranges from 0-15 grams of
sugar per litre. Extra Seco has a range of 12-20, Seco has 17-35 grams of sugar
per litre. The sweeter varieties are Semi-Seco, with a 33-50 grams of sugar per
litre concentration, and the sweetest is Dulce - more than 50 grams.
When
shopping for cava, as a general rule of thumb, the more expensive it is the
drier it is likely to be.Serving Cava
Cava is one of those wines that can't be chilled enough and is best served at a
temperature of around 8ºC. An interesting trick is to chill the glasses in the
freezer for half an hour before serving to help keep the wine cold.
Cava
is a special kind of wine and is a much cheaper alternative to Champagne. The
sparkling wine has
great quality and provides a different
wine
type for wine lovers. Be sure to try it the next time you're going to
celebrate.
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