Segura Viudas Brut Reserva

The sparkling wines of Spain are known as cava.

This cava, the Brut Reserva from Segura Viudas, is made from traditional Spanish grape varieties: Macabeo, Parellada, and Xarel-lo. This particular wine, designated brut should be nice and dry.

Cavas must be made with a secondary fermentation in the bottle. This is what makes the wine bubbly. The inexpensive method of simply injecting CO2 into a still wine is not allowed if the winemaker wants to call their product a cava.

Despite being made like traditional Champagnes, cavas remain relatively inexpensive. This can't be because of the taste. Cavas are generally crispy and delicious. Must be a failure of marketing.

Presentation/Appearance - 7/10 Simple, classic label, vigorous pop from the cork, and lots of gunsmoke emanating from the bottle. Violent medium-sized bubbling on the pour that builds a huge white head and then falls flat quickly. The wine stays active though, settling into a fountain of tiny bubbles rising from the center of the flute. You can see this in the photo.

Nose/Aroma - 6/10 Cut flowers, without the perfume. Nothing substantial.

Taste/Flavor - 7/10 This is, indeed, dry. Crispy, very active bubbling on the tongue. This is the way a cava should taste. Light bodied, good acidity, very refreshing.

Finish/Satisfaction - 7/10 This definitely lingers on the tongue. The bubbles seem to push the wine around the palatee. Long finish, somewhat acidic, but not tart.

Overall - 6.85/10 Satisfying and above average. If this had smaller bubbles and a creamier mouthfeel it would have scored much higher.

I like cavas, but I also enjoy sparkling wines from Italy and the United States. Of course, I love champagnes, too, but the price point for those always seems a little crazy to me. This wine sold for about $10 to $12. Quite reasonable. I'd love to hear any sparkling wine recommendations you might have.