Spain’s most famous sparkling wine, Cava, has not seen smooth sailing over the last decade. In fact, it’s been rough waters ever since a key producer, Raventos I Blanc, decided to make terroir-specific sparkling wines under the new breakaway appellation Conca del Riu Anoia. This had the ripple effect of encouraging others to pull back from Cava, including Corpinnat, a nine-producer “club” focused on making terroir-specific wines in Penedes. Yet the producers that remain have refocused their energies on a premiumization drive that has helped elevate the overall quality of Cava.
Unlike Champagne, Cava is not a place but rather a style highlighting a traditional method of winemaking, in this case aging wines on the lees in a cellar, or “Cave.” And even though Catalonia continues to ride high as the epicenter of Cava in Spain, it is still produced in many other areas of the country.
The Cava Regulatory Board has tightened rules around the top Cava category, Cavas de Guarda Superior, in an effort to improve overall quality. These include extending the minimum lees aging requirement for the Reserva level to 18 months from 15; for the Gran Reserva level to a minimum of 30 months; and for the most prestigious Paraja Calificado level to a minimum of 36 months (which brings it line with vintage Champagne), with a maximum yield of 8,000 kilograms per hectare. All the Cavas de Guarda Superior wines will have to be 100 percent organic by 2025.
The board also put in place a revised zoning system in 2021, with four main production regions: Comtats de Barcelona, Ebro Valley, Viñedos de Almendralejo and Levante.
One thing we’ve noticed in our Hong Kong tastings of Cava wines this year has been the increasing number of Brut Nature (residual sugar of three grams per liter or lower) and Gran Reserva Cavas sent to us for rating. We believe this is a positive sign in the push for premium quality while Cava’s style evolves to a more modern, drier taste, even though making higher-grade Cavas with little or no dosage is a challenge.
But all the premiumization efforts seem to have paid off, with Cava sales in both export and domestic markets increasing nearly 5 percent in 2022. This has naturally had an effect on prices, yet most high-quality Cavas remain a value proposition and can be purchased in the $15 to $30 price range. Here are eight great value Cava picks, all in the Brut and Brut Nature style, for under $30.
– Zekun Shuai, Senior Editor
Codorníu Cava Ars Collecta Blanc de Blancs Reserva Brut 2020 – JS92
International Price: $22
Dominio de la Vega Cava Reserva Especial Brut 2018 – JS92
KLWines.com: $19.99
Juvé & Camps Cava Reserva de la Familia Gran Reserva Brut Nature 2018 – JS92
Juveycamps.com: €19.90 (U.S. $22.35)
Muga Cava Casa Conde de Haro Reserva Brut 2019 – JS92
Wine.com: $29.99
Agusti Torello Mata Cava Pere Mata l’Ensamblatge Gran Reserva Brut Nature 2015 – JS91
U.S. Price: $28
Blanchard Perez Cava Brut NV – JS91
Wine.com: $16.99
Pere Ventura Cava Tresor Gran Reserva 2018 – JS91
International Price: $23
Avinyó Cava Reserva Brut 2019 – JS90
Wine.com: $19.99
