For generations, Spanish sparkling wine has been synonymous with Cava. Marketed as cheap, chic and high-quality, a quaffable designer dupe, consumers were guzzling it down by the gallon, until they stopped.
In recent years, enthusiasm for this traditional method wine – often positioned very consciously as an affordable alternative to Champagne, a la Quince vs. Bottega Veneta, Saint Laurent, et al – has waned to an alarming degree.
Sales of sparkling wine from Spain increased 22 percent between 2009 and 2025, which sounds great until you compare it with sales of Italian sparkling wine (276 percent) and French sparkling wine (74 percent). The value of Spanish wine has been, by comparison, also quite low. In 2025, French sparkling wines averaged $22.57 a liter, whereas Italian averaged $5.36, and Spanish sparkling wine averaged just $3.76.
Keep in mind of course that Cava is produced in the more time-consuming and expensive traditional method (same method as Champagne, different grapes) than Prosecco, which gets its second fermentation in a pressurized steel tank, instead of the bottle. Drill down further, and as of September of 2025, the value of Cava exports declined by value by 6.1 percent, and by volume by 13 percent.
But there's a new, sassier sparkler in Cava-town with more transparent and stringent farming and production strictures in place. Actually, make that two new sassy sparklers, made by former members of the Cava DO, who have watched the downward trend in prices and sales with alarm, and saw no alternative to launching their own categories of wine that they – and some observers – see as the only way to maintain quality and differentiate themselves from a brand that has lost its way.
"These new designations are largely producer driven, emerging from a desire to clearly differentiate serious, place-focused Spanish sparkling wines from Cava brands that many consumers associate with inexpensive, 'cheap and cheerful' uses like mimosas or cocktail blending," says Michelle Lim Warner, co-founder of DCANTER Wine Shop in Washington, DC. "The people leading this movement are deeply quality-minded – committed to organic farming, native grape varieties, longer lees aging, and greater transparency in both sourcing and production. The comparison to Prosecco, while arguably unfair, is largely the byproduct of that mass-production strategy. Consumer perception rarely captures nuance unless a category provides clear language and structural guardrails."
Will these ingenues, brimming with idealism and righteous indignation at what they see as the relentless dissolution of a once mighty category be able to persuade professionals and the larger public that their wines are more worthy?
We speak to rebels, insiders and observers.
Old vs new guard
But first, let's break down differences between Cava, and the two new entrees, Clàssic Penedès and Corpinnat. All are produced using the traditional method, with the second fermentation in-bottle.
The majority of Cava, which officially became a DO in 1986, is produced in Catalonia, with the lion's share coming from Penedès; but technically, it can be grown and produced in other regions with wildly different terroirs, including La Rioja and Valencia. The highest classifications are farmed organically, and while Spanish grapes like Xarel·lo, Macabeu and Parellada are used, several others are authorized and frequently deployed, especially internationals like Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Only the higher classifications (Guarda Superior) require aging for 18 plus months.
Clàssic Penedès was established within the DO Penedès in 2013. The grapes and wine can only be from the DO Penedès, and the wines must be farmed organically. Vintners use local grapes, as with Cava, but also international grapes and others. Wines must be aged for 15 plus months.
Click HERE to read the full article.