A vineyard at Spanish Cava producers Bodegas Grimau

DO Cava

Key Points

Grape varieties: Macabeo, Xarel-lo, Parellada, Malvasía, Chardonnay, Garnacha, Monastrell, Pinot Noir, Trepat.
Hectares planted: 38,133 Hectares
Grape growers: 6,284
Wineries: 147

About Cava

Cava is Spain’s most well-known, and most exported, sparkling wine or vino espumoso. Interestingly, while Cava is a Denominación de Origen in its own right, unlike the wines from Spain’s other DOs, Cava is not made in just one geographical area. In fact, there are currently four main growing areas authorized to put DO Cava on the label of their sparkling wines, including Valencia, Extremadura and the Ebro Valley, as well as a host of towns and villages in central Catalunya which is the region most people think of when they hear the word, Cava.

While each growing region has its differences in terms of altitude, orientation or soil types, in general all enjoy a relatively temperate climate with quite mild winters and long, hot summers, especially in the areas closer to the Mediterranean.

History

About 95% of Spain’s Cava comes from Catalunya, especially from the town of Sant Sadurní d’Anoia, which is about 40km inland from Barcelona. Cava production in Sant Sadurní dates back to the 1870s, and like many innovations in the wine world it was prompted by the arrival of phylloxera, the vine-eating aphid which arrived from the US in the late 1800s and devasted European vines. Phylloxera prompted Catalan farmers to diversify away from red grape varieties and begin working with local white varieties like Macabeo, Parellada and Xarel-lo which form the basis of the Cava blend.

Innovation

Today you’ll also find a new category of Cava producers, the so-called Corpinnat group made up of eleven wineries in the Penedès who have broken away from the main DO Cava and make their wines using only estate-grown grapes which are farmed organically and harvested by hand. Production is a little bit more labour-intensive so you can expect slightly higher prices, and the wines tend to be aged for that much longer than traditional Cavas, between 30 and 60 months on average.

Cava vs Champagne vs Prosecco

So, Cava, Champagne, Prosecco….what’s the difference? Well, technically speaking they all fit into the sparkling wine category, which encompasses a whole range of different wines made around the world of varying degrees of sweetness, fizziness and, of course, price. And like still wines, sparkling wines too can be made from a range of different grapes depending on where they are grown.

The key difference between sparkling wines is how they are made. All involve the accumulation of gas under pressure, and the most common way of achieving this is by some kind of secondary fermentation which creates carbon dioxide in the wine and makes it fizzy. But while both Champagne and Cava are made using the so-called traditional method, Prosecco is made using the tank method (aka the Charmat process) which is much cheaper, faster and less labour intensive than the traditional method. To find out more, read our article on how Cava is made.

A vineyard in the autumn in the Spanish wine region of Alicante

DO Alicante

DO Alicante has had official status since the early part of the 20^th century. But, as elsewhere in Spain, in the last ten years the region has undergone something of a renaissance.

An old white cottage on the brow of a hill at sunset in the Spanish wine region of Bierzo

DO Bierzo

Sitting in the northwest corner of Castilla y León and bordering Galicia and Asturias to the north, Bierzo is something of a transition zone between the Atlantic and the Spanish interior.

VT Cadiz

VT Cádiz is currently Spain’s fourth largest IGP (Indicación Geográfica Protegida) and 80% of the production is centred on white wines made predominantly with the Palomino Fino grape.

A landscape shot of the Serra Llarga in the Spanish wine region Costers del Segre

DO Costers del Segre

Costers del Segre is one of ten DOs in Catalunya. The name literally translates as "banks of the Segre" which is one of the many tributaries which feed into the Ebro river.

A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Jumilla

DO Jumilla

Sitting in a hot and dry corner of Castilla La Mancha, Jumilla is a great place to explore fuller-bodied reds made from the Monastrell grape. But it also offers plenty of fresher wines from higher altitude plots that are well worth investigating.

A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Manchuela

DO Manchuela

Sandwiched between the coastal regions to the East and central Spain to the West, Manchuela has a long history of winemaking. It's famed for the Bobal grape, once a stalwart of bulk wine but now increasingly used to make some exceptional single varietal wines.

Barells in a wine cellar in the Spanish wine region of Sanlucar de Barrameda

DO Manzanilla - Sanlúcar de Barrameda

In 1935, Spain’s first Denominación de Origen, D.O. Jerez-Xéres-Sherry y Manzanilla de Sanlúcar de Barrameda was created and then in 1964, in recognition of Manzanilla’s distinct profile, the separate DO Manzanilla – Sanlúcar de Barrameda was formed.

A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Montsant with mountains in the background

DO Montsant

Montsant is defined by mountains hills, ridges and slopes. The region can be divided into sub-zones from warmer, lower stretches in the south-west as the land falls away towards the Ebro river and higher, wilder areas to the north.

A vineyard at Bodegas Grimau in the Spanish wine region of Penedes

DO Penedès

Penedès is best known for Cava which was essentially invented by the Codorniu family in the 1870s in the town of Sant Sadurní d’Anoia. But it's also worth trying some of the region's wonderful aromatic white wines.

A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Priorat

DOQ Priorat

Priorat is one of the 10 DOs in Catalunya and, along with DOCa Rioja, it’s one of the two wine-growing regions in Spain with "DO+" which means that, like Rioja, the rules are that little bit stricter for wines made here.

A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Rías Baixas

DO Rías Baixas

Rias Baixas is home to the excellent Albariño wines, but has a growing number of other interesting grapes to discover. With thousands of small growers and producers, making wonderful artisanal wines, it's definitely worth exploring.

Steeply sloping vineyards on the banks of a river in the Spanish wine region of Ribeira Sacra in Galicia

DO Ribeira Sacra

Ribeira Sacra is the only DO in Galicia specialising in red wines. This is the land of "heroic viticulture" where vineyards hang from the vertiginous banks of the Sil and Miño rivers calling for winemakers with a good head for heights!

A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Ribeiro

DO Ribeiro

Ribeiro is the oldest of the five DOs in Galicia. With vineyards grouped along the three valleys formed by the Miño, Avia and Arnoia rivers, Ribeiro is well-known as for its wonderful, blended white wines made from native local grapes.

An aerial view of the River Duero in Spain

DO Ribera del Duero

After Rioja, Ribera del Duero is one of Spain’s best known wine regions. But despite a long winegrowing history, the region was only awarded DO status in 1982.

A landscape view of a vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Rioja

DOCa Rioja

One of the world’s best known and best loved wine regions, Rioja was one of the first regions in Spain to become an official DO almost a hundred years ago. Today, it’s on a par with other great wine-producing regions of the world.

Close up of vines in a vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Rueda

DO Rueda

Like many of Spain’s DOs, Rueda is an historic wine region with winemaking traditions that stretch back to the Middle Ages. The Rueda DO was created in the early 1980s, and these days is famed for its white wines made from the Verdejo grape.

DO Sierras de Málaga

Spread across the province of Málaga, DO Sierras de Málaga has a winemaking histoiry that dates back to the time of the Phoenicians in around 800 BC.

A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Somontano

DO Somontano

Somontano’s broad identity makes it a comfortable entry-point for international wine lovers looking to familiarise themselves with Spanish wine. But it’s also a region with a deep winemaking history and lots of local colour and diversity.

DO Terra Alta

Terra Alta is a county defined by its Mediterranean agriculture. Covering some twelve towns with a combined population of around 12,000 people, the plains, plateaus and valleys are planted with olive and almond trees, but above all vines.

A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Toro

DO Toro

Toro is "the other DO on the Duero", sandwiched between the more famous Ribera del Duero to the east and the Douro region just across the border in Portugal.

An aerial shot of vineyards in the Spanish wine region of Vinos de Madrid

DO Vinos de Madrid

Despite its best efforts, the Vinos de Madrid region is still relatively unknown even for wine drinkers in Madrid. Which is a real shame because the DO has got a lot to shout about.