Codorníu Cava Pinot Noir Brut - Pink Bubbly

We had happy girly celebrations this week, what better way to toast them than to drink pink and sparkly wine? That's what we thought when we bought a variety of Cava Rosadas. It would have made for a far better celebration if we'd remembered to take them along to the party. We had to chill them for mid-week drinking instead - life is hard.

The Codorníu Cava Pinot Noir Brut was an attractive salmon pink with firm and assertive bubbles. It smelled fruity and a littly earthy, with a gentle strawberry flavour, not overwhelming, well balanced with lemon acidity.

It was good value sparkles, and the pink fruitiness was a pleasant change for the summertime.

Freixenet Excelencia Brut Cava

So 'perennial underachievers' Spain have made it through to te semi-finals of the European Championships. It does seem like they've trademarked the phrase.

What better way to celebrate than with a bottle of Cava, a Freixenet Excelencia Brut Cava. It's made from the classic Cava grape blend in what I'm not going to call the Champagne method, it's the traditional method. It opened with a reassuring pop, and the bubbles were lively leaving a persistent mousse, which looks inviting.

It smells almost floral, alongside the more expected lemony-ness. The bubbles burst quite assertively, but no unpleasantly in the mouth, with plenty more lemon flavour and apple. The flavour is fresh and invigorating, and whilst it doesn't have the biscuity richness of some of its older relatives, it doesn't miss it.

Served cold on a summer evening it's good value for under a tenner, offering something a little different in the sparkling space.

Celebrate - WooHoo?

We had a mini celebration for a colleague who was "off to follow her bliss". Her plan may seem bonkers to others but it's making her happy and not hurting anyone else, so good luck and best wishes were called for all round.

The mini celebration was accompanied by mini bottles of Cava. ASDA Cava, in little bottles that look like they have mushroom corks, but actually have plastic imitation mushroom shaped caps around screwtops.

ASDA Mas Miralda Cava has bubbles, is acidic and does get you light headed on an empty stomach quite quickly. The tiny bottles fit well into a tiny fridge, which is useful too. Oh, and it's cheap - 4 for a fiver. Crush in some sell-by-date strawberries from the farm shop and serve with a bag of Tyrrells Vegetable Crisps for a mini celebration of your own.

Singing in the rain

Planning a holiday in the North York Moors in June and July seemed like a great idea - swimming, cycling, walking and barbequing in the sun all day long. That was before the great flood of 2007. The motorway was closed, sizeable bits of road have been washed away, but I'm here and it's lovely. The sun has been shining, the birds singing, and the hills fierce so now my legs are sore and my nose burnt.

It started raining late afternoon, inviting a drink cheer me up. We had a 2003 Clos Monistrol Vintage Cava from Sainsbury's. A very hot year following plenty of early rain in Spain.

It was dry, fresh, yeasty and lemony. There was apple too, which didn't make it all the way to quince, and just the right amount of fizz - perfect in fact for Kir's and after sitting open for half an hour, for Bellini's.

At £3.99 a bottle this isn't fooling anyone into thinking they're drinking fine Champagne, but in cocktails, or just as a well chilled afternoon treat it's excellent value.

Yeast will eat itself

I was searching for a lost file this week. It was important and it wasn���t in my e-mail. I was having to search for ��� gasp ��� a paper copy. In doing so I looked in filing cabinets, normally things I simply use to keep plants on. In one I found an old bottle of Mas Tauler Cava. It had a note attached ��� it had been a gift from a supplier to an employee who left four years ago.

We cracked it open this afternoon, with every intent of pouring it down the sink. It opened with a reassuring fizz after a couple of days in the fridge. It was a rich lemon gold colour and the bubbles kept coming.

It smelled of yeast. All sorts of yeast. Think hot buttered toast with Marmite and crumbled biscuits on top. The bubbles kept going in the mouth, with a reasonable amount of acid and little sugar. The yeastiness continued, without a hint of fruit. The toast was burned, the marmite was thick, and oddly, a hint of peanut butter entered the equation.

This was odd. It was clearly too old, but if we���d caught it a year ago, it may have been far too good for the c ��5 it cost. Maybe if we had stored it somewhere more sensible than a filing cabinet it may have done better, but it certainly hadn���t been disturbed and maybe filing cabinets do help to maintain a steady temperature.

I still don���t know what I did with that file, but now I don���t really care.

Happy Birthday!

Some friends had a happy, healthy baby this week. Hurrah! She arrived a month earlier than planned, so we were delighted she was fine, but I was woefully short of Champagne to celebrate. A quick scoot around the kitchen revealed a few sparklers, but nothing from the required neighbourhoods in northeast France.

I cracked open a Cava from the fridge, intended for a somewhat lesser (as yet undetermined) pleasant surprise.

It was certainly bubbly, with persistent small bubbles giving a creamy mousse. It smells yeasty, more bread than marmite. There���s fresh green apples and limes. It���s just off dry with a balanced acidity. Medium body and alcohol add to that balance. The bubbles create a lovely creamy fizz in the mouth. The yeast and fruit carry through, with the addition of some ripe melon adding more rich fruitiness.

At ��7 retail this is a fabulous value wine. It���s excellent fizz easily of the quality of Champagnes twice the rice (or even three times without discounts). This bottle was left over from the Christmas Thresher offer, it cost me about a fiver. I really don���t know why I don���t have a glass with lunch every day!

Thankful for Spain

Spain is still a source of great wine at reasonable prices. Whether it’s Sherry, Rioja or Cava, to get a wine of similar quality, made with similar care in France you need to pay a lot more.

I had a good bottle of Cava this week. It certainly wasn’t Champagne, but would easily kick the butt of any Cremant at the same price. It was a “C d’O” Castell d’Olerdola Cava Reserva from Catalonia.

With plenty of small bubbles forming an attractive mousse it certainly looked the part. It smelled autolytic with a little marmite with honey, bread, and toffee-banana with a touch of minerality.

Just off dry with good acidity and a creamy mousse, the flavours from the nose carried through well to the palate.

For £6-7, this was great value, being made by the traditional method and having had 15 months on the lees – the same as any NV champagne. As with any cheap cava it had benefited from 6 months in the bottle at home – a sensible investment.

Sparkling fun

Some friends took a driving trip around Europe this summer, stopping close to Barcelona for a few days, taking time to stock up on Cava. We had some at the weekend. It was Freixenet Carta Nevada Sec. It’s not a fancy wine, and came in at around €5 a bottle.

It’s a pale light yellow with oodles of fizz. The bubbles are small, and there’s lots of them that keep going like a Duracell bunny. It has some good yeasty character, with a thin layer of fruit.

It’s medium dry, with crisp acidity that balances out the sugar. The bubbles feel creamy and refreshing and 11.5% alcohol keeps it light. The yeastiness carries through with a smidge of marmite and nutty softness.

If you can find it in the UK it’s around £6-7, still good value. This is an ideal wine for a little sparkle with dessert, or better still with pancakes and fruit for Sunday brunch.