Name: Cristalino Cava Brut
Grape: 50% Macabeo, 35% Parellada, 15% Xarello
Region: Spain
Price: $6.99 to $9.99
If you like Prosecco, odds are you're a Cava fan too, although you may not know it yet.
Cava is Spain's version of Prosecco, a light and easy sparkling wine. Although unlike Prosecco, Cava undergoes secondary fermentation in the bottle, the Methode Champenoise style. Like all sparkling wines, Cava comes in a range of sweetness, which can be very confusing. From dry to sweet, the labeling goes in this order: Extra-Brut, Brut, Extra-Seco, Seco, Semi-Seco and Dulce. It's a bit mind bending, one would think that Extra-Seco would be sweeter than Semi-Seco but in fact the opposite is true. Fortunately most of the readily available Cava is Extra-Brut or Brut; just keep your eye out for anything with "seco" on the label.
I order this cava by the case. Perfect to drink as an "everyday" sparkler. Also, cheap enough to pop open a bottle when guests drop by (which I've found to be a very welcoming thing to do). It's also great for mimosas.
Oooooooh. Careful. Prosecco is just moonshine with bubbles. I'm here to testify.
seco means dry... why would extra-seco be sweeter than semi-seco??? brut means brute as in brutally dry and is therefore always drier than something labeled simply "dry"... it makes perfect sense...