Elegant and glamorous Champagne and Cava- making our senses travel

Activities, Food and Drink on January 8, 2010 11:56 am

Champagne or Cava? These two drinks are both as important as each other. Elegant, due to their aromas and glamorous for the effect they produce; they make our senses travel between Spain and France.

I will be detailing to you the art of the ‘champenoise’ method. Rather than asking whether Champagne is better than Cava, we should be asking ourselves what makes the difference between these two wines with their head-turning bubbles. A Grenache wine and a merlot are two different varieties from different grapes; thereby they have their own characteristics. Champagne and Cava are made using a ‘champenoise’- or even a ‘traditional’- method but the difference really lies in their make-up.

Cava is made from 3 white grapes: Macabeo, Xarello and Perellada, varieties of grape that always produce a greater degree of acidity, and therefore are better when drunk cold. The thing that really makes the finished product, either Cava or Champagne is the influence of the climate, the composition of the soil and the ‘savoir-faire’. The difference in the size of the bubbles is important in the overall taste and balance in drinking. The smaller and more integral the bubble, the nicer structure it brings in drinking, Carbonic gas should not be perceptible in the mouth at all- it should form an integral part of the wine with a certain discreet nuance in the character of the product.

Cava remains a product with a long tradition in Catalonia. It is consumed and distributed in much the same way as Champagne in France. It is important to know that there are numerous, heavily-marketed brands, and Cava has its own D.O., the equivalent to A.O.C. in France.

In all cases, Champagne is made both from two red varieties, Pinot noir and Pinot meunier, which lend structure and character, and from a white variety of grape, Chardonnay, which brings elegance, subtlety, freshness and finesse. Champagne, with its bubbles and reinvigorating- and some might say aphrodisiacal- effects, is the quintessence of sparkling quality.

Champagne is present throughout history; from the Roi Soleil (King Louis XIV) to the Tsars, from Buckingham Palace to Churchill, from Marilyn to James Bond, and nowadays for sports’ champions and rock stars…The bubbles are always there for the celebrations, but also for romanticism. Perfect chemistry for two people who love each other, Champagne carries you away, unites emotions and helps to create a symbiosis of feelings.

To each situation its own Champagne, its company and pretext. One may be a strong white to be drunk in company, another, a vintage to accompany a gastronomic dinner, or a bottle of Mesnil to be tasted just as an aperitif. Above all, it must be respected as a gift from nature.

15% Discount on Wine and Champagne tasting, with the Oh-Barcelona Discount card (What´s this?)

Gael Le Bec, Sommelier.

For the further information: view his profile

Click here to view his website.