Foto: CRC	Ampliar

The summer means heat, light clothes, informality, sunlight, holidays, open air entertainment and parties. It is also a very suitable season to enjoy our best moments with cava. There are different types of cava for each ocasion, so it is up to the consumer to decide which variety prefers to drink with an appetizer or a meal in an open air cafe or a party in a summer night. A glass of cava served at the ideal temperature -between 5 and 8 Celsius degrees-, depending on the cava's vintage and the meal it is going to accompany, can help fight the heat. The carbonic acid within cava helps cleaning the palate after an oily meal and the bubbles contribute to a good digestion. The properties of this sparkling wine make it a perfect complement for summer meals, which must be refreshing and not heavy at all. Experts suggests that cava is the sublimation of the wine and, if we consider the large amount of possibilities of this sparkling wine, they're right. Cava for all occasions The coupage, the vintage, the variations on the fermentation and sugar grade are all the elements that create the different types of cava. For an apperitif, with a clean palate, experts recommend the refreshing effect of a Brut cava which served at an accurate temperature is a good companion for canapés, ham, cheese and dried fruits. If we are looking for a fresh and fruity taste, with an stimulating point of sourness, we must choose a vintage cava. After fermentation and a minimum vintage time of 15 months in the dark of the cellars, the summer is a good moment to uncork a bottle and drink it open air in our lunch or dinner accompanying all kinds of salads, seafood and rices. A Great Vintage cava, with a toasted touch, is reserved for those who search a full-bodied wine for their summer meals. This variety is a good companion for all kind of meats, roasts, poultry and seasoned meals. It enjoys an special status due to its 30 months vintage, being considered as the quintessence of cava. Rosé cava is fresh and represents the exuberante of the summer season. It is said to be the most tangible example of the product's modernity. Rosé cava is the most aromatic, light and inviting variety, and its red shades brighten up the summer tables and evoke pleasant memories of red fruits to the palate. It is a perfect complement to enrich the red fruits recommended by the experts during these hot months. The rite of cava Whatever cava you choose, experts always recommend to taste it and admire its tiny and fine bubles, the richness of its scents and the complexities of its flavour. That's why it has to be tasted with calm. If it's consumed at home during the summer, it is recommended not to have it several days in the fridge. The best way to cool it is to introduce the bottle in a container with water and ice cubes (half and half) at least 30 minutes prior to open it. The ideal temperature for serving young cavas is between 5 and 8 Celsius degrees; for vintage cavas the ideal temperature is 7 to 10 Celsius degrees. But always keep in mind that when it is served on the glasses it increases it temperature in 2 or 3 Celsius degrees and, after that, it increases its temperature 1 degree every three minutes. Cava must be served in high and transparent flute glasses. Those who prefer to enjoy this wine at night at open air cafes shouldn't forget to hold the glass by its stem. In addition to be the most elegant way of grabbing it, it avoids further increases in cava's temperature. All those advices that transform the consumption of cava in a little rite go beyond the moment when a bottle is uncork, as the production of this wine is full of requirements that make cava an special and pamper product since its origin. How to identify cava The Cava Regulatory Board looks after the quality of the production marked with its seal. Its controls begin at the vineyards, continue at the cellars and end at the corking. After that is the consumer who is charged with the care of cava: when it is going to be consumed, whether it is at home or outside, the consumer must be sure that the bottle carries the distingushing numbered mark issued by the Regulatory Board -as a seal or a strip-; he also must be sure that the word 'Cava' can be read both in the cork and in the label. Xarel.lo, parellada, macabeo and chardonnay are the varieties of grapes used in a complex, long and delicate process whose result is cava, a sparkling wine full of nuances. Its different types and the richness of its flavours make of it a versatile product for every occasion, may it be an emotive toast to a summer encounter, an apperitif taken at a open air cafe in the beach or a night party. Cava has so many faces as summer has possibilities to enyoy.