Cava instead of Champagne

[Zak33]

Sparkling wine from the Champagne region of France is bigger dough than most. It IS Champagne...nothing else is....but that doesn't make it good. Some is...some is pants and all big dough.

Cava is from Spain....it comes in just as many vaireties of grape and changes of flavour, and it is a third or less. Sometimes so cheap you think "can't be much good"....

not necessarily.

Do NOT be embarressed to buy Cava instead of Champagne....its JUST like getting an AMD chip instead of an Intel......the people who KNOW what they like...get it.

DAMN GOOD VALUE.....and sometimes BETTER that the "real thing"

so next time you need to go get a bottle of "bubbly" get Cava......most are Traditional method production, and you often see 3 for a tenner.....supermarkets often do that kind of deal. And if you NEVER have got a bottle of bubbly....DO!

And the nicest thing is that many Spanish are immensely proud of their sprakling wines...and rightly so. A proud nation fed up with the French selling a similar quality product for 3 or 4 times the money.

Remember....Cava.....

and it gets you pleasantly drunk quite fast, gives a lower grade hangover than lots of stuff, and you even get it Rose

Go on..treat yourselves

PS: Brut still means Dry...... and it STILL goes well with Strawberries.....bite a strawberry in half, chew one, glug of Cava...and WAIT for the explosion as the natural sugar mixes with the bubbles

[malfunction]

Prosecco - same type of thing but Italian (Waitrose do a good bottle for about £6).

Also if you always think that fizz (whatever type) is a bit sharp / acidic just go for something that's not as dry.

BTW - best proper stuff I've ever had is DP (Dom Pérignon that is) but I wasn't paying for it (stuff I have paid for on ocasion includes normal Moet which I'm not impressed by (despite DP being owned / produced by Moet) - I quite like Piper Heidsieck (brut - red label) but it's still around £20 a bottle so not something for everyday.

[Elmo]

I only drink cava usually cos i love it, it tastes yummy and it's only about £4 a bottle in sainsburys. Oh, the bubbles make you giddy too

[Russ]

any 1 been to champane in france, MILES of underground wine cellars in old ak caskets, site to behold.

[Big RICHARD]

I prefer shiraz!

[nichomach]

Also worth a look are Aussie Chardonnay/Pinot Noir sparklers - same grape mix as champagne, more expensive than Cava, but usually a LOT less than champagne; worth noting is that a good Aussie sparkler can be a lot better than a bad champagne.

[petrefax]

wise words zakk - i have absolutely no problem with cava, never have, its just as lovely & much cheaper, where's the problem with that!!

[gss03]

Buckfast can be made into a fizzy *tonic* wine.
Place said contents into a Soda Stream machine and blast away....

Out comes a drink known as BUCK FASTER !

[Zak33]

worth noting is that a good Aussie sparkler can be a lot better than a bad champagne.

with you on that too

Nottage Hill about £7 a bottle....just amazing

[5lab]

doesnt say champagne on it thou, so you look like a right tight b*stard

[shiato storm]

cava is called cava because the french made a fuss at the fact the spanish called it champagne a while ago and strickly speaking they don't have a region in spain called champagne (surprisingly the french do) and so we have cava, much cheaper but exactly the same process to get there and often tastier... great!! I drink cava and champagne a fair bit ('cause I can!) and often both are so close. bolingers? pah!

[Zak33]

glad to see so many people agree.....

5lab...I love you......and would happily argue withyou, but I know you are on a wind-up so pass him the spoon someone for a further stir

[shiato storm]

who cares if you look like a tight B******d, at least you're getting just as p*ssed but for a fraction of the price!!!

[acidrainy]

Anything that uses a double fermentation is A OK with me

To coin a phrase "It's all gooood"

[Elmo]

Buckfast can be made into a fizzy *tonic* wine.
Place said contents into a Soda Stream machine and blast away....

Out comes a drink known as BUCK FASTER !

that's just revolting.
<sweeping generalisation>
buckfast is for cheapy winos and (underage) neds to drink stood on strreet corners.
</sweeping generalisation>

[Merlin]

and the risk of blowing up your sodastream?!

seriously though, my uncle once tried to re-fizz some flat tonic water by putting it in the sodastream, and the bottle exploded, showering him, the walls, the cupboards, the floor and the ceiling in tonic water!

You have been warned...