It’s Valentine’s Day, and I can’t think of a better bubbly for your buck than the Raventos I Blanc De Nit Brut Rose.
Long recognized as Spain’s top sparkling wine producer, the current rendition of their De Nit Brut Rose is simply outstanding. Drinking like a very fine Champagne, but costing a fraction of the price, this is my bubbly pick for Valentine’s Day.
2015 Raventos I Blanc De Nit Brut Rose
Drinks like real-deal, rose Champagne at half the price!
This vintage is sold out. Click here to order the current release in our online store.
Any discussion of Spanish sparkling wine would be incomplete without mentioning the Raventos family. With a winemaking tradition that goes back over 500 years, Raventos I Blanc possesses the longest, documented viticulture tradition in the world! The same family, the same plot of land, the same commitment to quality for over 500 years………..ponder that for a second. It is also worth noting that Spain’s first bottle-fermented wine was made by Josep Raventos Fatjo.
These days, the estate is run with tremendous passion by Pepe Raventos. Since re-joining the family firm, he has made some dramatic changes that have caused many to label him a rebel. Most importantly, in 2012, Raventos seceded from the Cava D.O., and created a new one called Conca del Riu Anoia. Why? Pepe says, “We wanted to do something very different from what cava has become.” This new D.O. has very strict, qualitative requirements: Only native grape varieties are used and farmed biodynamically. Each wine is also vintage dated and aged for a minimum of 18 months on the lees. That’s 3 months longer than non-vintage Champagne has to be aged and twice as long as Cava has to be aged.
Their De Nit bottling is as good or better than many true Champagnes that cost twice the price. A blend of biodynamically farmed Macabeo, Xarel-lo, Parellada, and Monastrell, this pale/salmon colored wine is super fine with lovely notes of delicate red fruit, mixed citrus, flowers, and complex mineral nuances. It possesses very fine bubbles, wonderful balance, and an intense minerality that comes from the estate’s rocky limestone soils.
This vintage is sold out. Click here to order the current release in our online store.
Josh Spurling
Owner, Operator, Wine Monger
Table Wine Asheville