Cataluña - Cavas

Our landlord took us out today on his wine run. We first stopped at a large winery that sells red (negro), white (blanco), and rosado (rose) wine by the jug. Yes, the jug. Our host brought along 4 very large containers, 2 for blanco, 1 for negro and 1 for rosado. In all, he probably siphoned off some 12 gallons of wine from the enormous vats housed in the winery.

Next, he took us to his cousin's winery where they make organic cava, the Catalunyan version of champagne. The wine is made in the methode champenoise, so is identical in process to champagne, but because it is not grown in the terroir of Champagne, it cannot carry that name. We have yet to taste the bottle our host gifted us, but were fascinated by the production. Grapes from 3 different varietals are first fermented and then blended into one wine. This wine then has more sugar and yeast added to it and is fermented a second time, aging in the cellars or cavas for 18-24 months. When the wine is properly aged, it's "riddled", turned and rotated 1/8 turn each day for 8 days so that the cloudy sediment rises to the neck of the bottle. The bottle is then turned upside down, the neck is placed in a chiller that freezes only the wine in the neck of the bottle and then this wine is "popped" out of the bottle upon opening. Finally, a mere inch of wine is added back to the bottle to "top" it up and it's corked, wired and foiled. If the wine that's added has no additional sugar, the resulting cava is "brut natural", if some sugar is added, it's "semi-sec", and if quite a lot is added it ends up being sold to the Chinese market. No, this is not a racist remark... It appears the Chinese like their champagne and cava quite sweet, that is "sec" or even "doux".

Gracias... Josep, Teresa y su familia gracias por compartir su hermosa Catalunya con nosotros.