Cava dominates Spainish family dinners

The battle of the bubbles is about to commence this holiday season. In the Spanish corner is the challenger Cava - a sparkling wine, and in the other corner is the French champion, champagne.

The town of Sant Sadurni I d'Anoia is located in the middle of the Penedes region where 95 percent of Spanish cava is produced, about forty kilometres south of Barcelona.

Segura Viudas is part of the Freixenet group which claims to be the world's largest producer of sparkling wine.

The grapes are harvested, mostly manually, from the end of August until the end of October. Next comes the blending of still wines where the cellar master and his team mix different wines from different harvests and grape-varieties to create the desired combination.

According to Spain's National Regulating Council for Cava, an estimated two hundred million bottles of Cava are exported every year reaching consumers all over the world.

2006 was a record year for the consumption of cava in Spain with 100 million bottles sold nationally. Only 3.5 million bottles of French champagne were sold in Spain during the same span.

So, in Spain at any rate, the challenger cava has dealt a knockout blow to champagne and reigns supreme as the celebratory drink of choice.