Grapes
60% Monastrell, 20% Garnacha and 20% Pinot Noir
Facts
Have you ever tried a good Cava?
I’ll answer for you: No, you have probably never tasted a decent Cava.
Most of the Cava that is readily available from most grocery stores is generic-tasting "fizz". Perfect for mixing with Mimosas, nothing special on its own.
Cava doesn’t exactly have the best reputation in the wine world, kind of similar to Asti (Nasti Asti as we used to call it in my younger and more vulnerable years). The Llopart Brut Rose might just be the Cava to change your opinion of the Spanish sparkler.
Cava is a Latin word that means cave in English. Caves were originally used for the preservation or aging of wine Spanish sparkling wines.
The Llopart winery has been in existence since 1385 and have been making Cava since 1887.
Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate gave the Llopart Brut Rose Cava 90 Points.
This wine was produced by the traditional Champagne method, and spent up to 24 months aging in the barrel.
The obscure grapes of Macabeo, Parellada and Xarel·lo are the main three grapes used for Cava wine production throughout history. Indigenous to Spain, these grapes are still the primary grapes of Cava today, though some producers (such as Llopart) are experimenting with the use of the traditional sparkling wine grapes, such as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir (as are used in the Champagne region of France).
Place
Cava is a type of sparkling wine produced in the Penedes (Catalonia) region of Spain, just west of Barcelona. There is no Cava grape, there is no Cava region.
At the present, there are some 250 producers of Cava in Spain, which fall in six defined regions in order for them to be legally called Cava. Freixenet [fresh-eh-net], accounts for more than 60% of Cava sales in the United States.
The area possesses nearly ideal conditions for vine cultivation. The soils are primarily limestone and clay, with some variations depending on the altitude and proximity to the sea. The climate is Mediterranean and mild with an average year round temperature of about 60°F.
Cava’s are required by law to be aged for a minimum of nine months after fermentation.
The majority of Penedés vintners are small and family-owned. Some are literally one-man operations, making wine exclusively from their own harvests and performing each step of the process. Many vineyards have been in the possession of a single family for generations.
For more information, visit: www.llopart.es/
Taste
Beautiful perfume of ripe strawberries and raspberries, with floral undertones on the nose.
On the palate shows impressive a fruit-forward, complex blend of red cherry, strawberry and raspberry. Creamy and minerally texture, with just a hint of residual sugar and vanilla. Finishes crisp with good acidity.
Food
Llopart Brut Rose Cava would be an excellent match with salmon (in its various cooked or smoked forms), sushi or shrimp. Also give thought to desserts such as creme brulee, or fresh fruits salads, but perfectly great by itself.
Price
$20
