Cava, Sparkling Wine, Champagne: What’s the Difference?

Terminology in wine can be confusing, and sparkling wine is no exception. There are many different types of sparkling wine with names that often indicate in what part of the world the wine is grown.

Sparkling wine is the broadest term for bubbly. You can find sparkling wines from Spain, France, Italy, Germany, the United States, Australia and even Africa. Sparkling wines include Champagne, Cava, Prosecco, and Sekt, among others.
There is a common tendency to use the word “champagne” to refer to any type of bubbly, but the truth is that only sparkling wine produced in the Champagne region of France can carry this name.

Cava is sparkling wine from Spain made with native grapes like Macabeo, Xarel-lo and Parellada. This Spanish bubbly undergoes the méthode champenoise, a complex process where the second fermentation takes place in the bottle, deep within the cool, underground caves that give cava its name (check out our section on How Freixenet is Made for more details on this process). All Freixenet Cavas are made in the méthode champenoise and it can take up to three years from the time we pick the grapes until the wine is ready for your glass!

The beautiful terroir of Penedès, the generous Catalan climate, and painstaking attention to detail both in the vineyard and the winery allow us to produce charming and elegant Freixenet Cavas that rival many of the best Champagnes.

Here’s to bubbly in all its forms!