REGULATORY BOARD
This is a body dependent upon the Ministry of Agriculture, Nutrition and Environment. It comprises: winegrowers, producers and representatives of the Autonomous Communities of the “Cava Region” and the Ministry.
It dates back to the year 1959 when the Trade Regulations of Sparkling and Fizzy Wines were established, in which the term Cava appears for the first time. A subsequent Order of the Ministry of Agriculture dated 23 April 1969 sets out the regulations for sparkling and fizzy wines, and Cava was acknowledged as the term for sparkling wines produced using the “classic system of fermentation in the bottle and ageing in the “cava”, and could therefore “designate its products as Cava”. This definition was the basis for designating the product with this name.
With CAVA now classified as a quality wine (v.e.c.p.r.d.), the Regulations on Cava and its Regulatory Board were enacted by the Order dated 14 November 1991.
It was in 1972 when the Ministerial Order dated 27 July was enacted and the Regulatory Board of Sparkling Wines was set up, operating in a manner similar to the Designations of Origin. This provision made Cava subject to its own regulations as regards making, production and marketing.
Spain’s membership of the EU placed DO wines on the same level as quality wines (v.c.p.r.d.). Prior to the Membership Treaty, Cava was the only specific Spanish designation with its own structure, identical to the Designations of Origin; the difference lay in the delimitation of the area, and it was for this reason that the “Cava Region” was established at the beginning of 1986, delimiting its production area. Cava was therefore protected under the EU and acknowledged as a quality sparkling wine produced in a given region (v.e.c.p.r.d.).
The chief faculties of the Regulatory Board are:
- Guide, supervise and monitor the production, making and quality of these wines.
- Ensure the prestige of the designation “Cava” and prosecute any improper use of the name.
- Promote “Cava” to expand and enhance its markets.
- Defend the designation from a juridical-institutional viewpoint
Composition of the Regulatory Board:
Chairman
Deputy Chairman
Six Members representing the production sector
Six Members representing the wine-making sector
Representative appointed by each of the Autonomous Communities of the Cava Region
One representative appointed by the Ministry of the Environment, Rural and Marine Affairs
Secretary General
Legislation
REGULATIONS: ORDER 14.11.91 BOE Nº 278 (20.11.91) Download PDF
(including modifications)
Modified by:
ORDER 09.01.92 BOE Nº24 (16.01.92)
ORDER 08.07.92 BOE Nº174 (1.07.02)
ORDER 06.05.93 BOE Nº119 (19.05.93)
ORDER 15.09.95 BOE Nº228 (23.09.95)
ORDER 06.02.98 BOE Nº43 (19.02.98)
ORDER 30.06.05 BOE Nº166 (13.07.05)
ORDER 23.02.07 BOE Nº 50 (27.02.07)
ORDER 21.05.10 BOE Nº 136 (04.06.10)
Legal background:
- Order 02.07.59 (BOE 04.08.59). Trade Regulations on Sparkling and Fizzy Wines.
- Order 12.01.66 (BOE 18.01.66). Regulations on Sparkling and Fizzy Wines.
- Order 23.04.69 (BOE 01.05.69). Regulations on Sparkling and Fizzy Wines.
- Order 04.02.70 (BOE 10.02.70). Modifies Order 23.04.69.
- Order 07.04.70 (BOE 14.04.70). Modifies Orders 23.04.69 and 04.02.70.
- Order 27.07.72 (BOE 08.08.72). Regulations on Sparkling and Fizzy Wines and creation of the Regulatory Board of Sparkling Wines.
- Resolution 11.07.73 (BOE 18.09.73). Conditions of the passing corks and liquor.
- Resolution 11.07.73 (BOE 19.09.73). Resolution on Cava transfer method.
- Order 19.05.75 (BOE 27.05.75). Order regarding the conditions required of sparkling wine producing companies.
- Order 27.02.86 (BOE 28.02.86). Order under which the “Cava Region” is created
- Correction of errors in Order 28.02.86 (BOE 04.03.86).
- Order 19.01.87 (BOE 27.01.87). Extension of the timeframe for using the designation Cava by companies outside the Cava Region.
- Order 13.11.87 (BOE 25.11.87). Modifies Order 27.07.72
- Order 13.07.88 (BOE 15.07.87). Modifies Order 27.07.72
- Order 03.07.89 (BOE 16.08.89). Aforementioned High Court sentence against Order 27.02.86.
ELECTORAL Order: ORDER 08.11.12 BOE Nº 279 (20.11.12) Download PDF
SCHEDULE OF TERMS DOP CAVA Download PDF
Quality Control
Cava is subjected to quality checks carried out by the technical services of the Regulatory Board.
These controls start in the vineyards, using the registers of plots entitled to produce grapes for Cava making, control of volumes produced, monitoring of the quality and final destination of the grapes.
Registered producers must comply with the specific technical conditions to obtain the right to produce both the cuvée and the Cava. The tipping stoppers for Cava must be marked with the month and year of the operation so as to guarantee the minimum ageing periods required by the Regulations.
Quality, analytical and organoleptic controls are conducted so as to evaluate the cuvées, a process during which regular inspections, stock statements and verification of movements are made.
the only sparkling
wine which can bear
this distinction
The labels for any type of Cava must first be authorised by the Board and meet the requisites under current law.
The entire, complex control system includes the quality check of the finished product, authorising the use of the name “Cava” and also the terms “Reserva” and “Gran Reserva”, issuing the numbered control marks (disc or band) with the three terms above which all bottles destined for consumption must bear, as seals which guarantee the quality and origin of the Cava.
Control Marks
Cava
minimum ageing, 9 months
Cava Reserva
minimum ageing, 15 months
Cava Gran Reserva
minimum ageing, 30 months
The characteristics of cavas will depend on the differing variety combinations, years and also the different ageing periods.
To qualify as a Gran Reserva, cavas are subjected to special quality controls including, organoleptic and analytical examinations.
The indication “Gran Reserva” may only be used for “Brut Nature”, “Extra Brut” and “Brut”, which are aged for thirty months or more in the same cellars. The label must necessarily show the indication “Gran Reserva” and the year of the harvest. In this respect, Cava is the only sparkling wine which can bear this distinction.
