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Prosecco is Italian, made in a tank, and tastes of pear and apple. Cava is Spanish, made in the bottle like Champagne, and tastes of citrus, almond and toast. Prosecco is the fruitier one; Cava is the more serious one.
They usually cost about the same, which is why the choice comes down to what you want out of the glass rather than what you want to spend. One is a party, the other is a dinner.
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The Difference in One Paragraph
Prosecco gets its bubbles in a big steel tank over about a month, which keeps the fruit bright and the wine simple in a good way. Cava gets its bubbles inside the bottle and then sits on its spent yeast for at least nine months, which builds bready, nutty flavours. Same fizz, completely different route.
Where They Come From
Prosecco comes from north-east Italy, mostly Veneto and Friuli. The broad zone is Prosecco DOC. The historic heart is Conegliano Valdobbiadene, promoted to DOCG in 2009, which covers about 8,667 hectares across fifteen communes in the province of Treviso. Asolo is the other DOCG, and Cartizze is a single steep hill inside it that costs accordingly.
Cava is Spanish and mostly Catalan, centred on Penedès near Barcelona. It is defined by how it is made rather than by one place, which is unusual for a European appellation and slightly confusing for everyone.
The Grapes
Prosecco is made from Glera, which must be at least 85% of the blend in Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG. The rest can come from local varieties such as Verdiso, Bianchetta Trevigiana and Perera. Glera gives pear, green apple and white flowers.
Cava is traditionally three Catalan whites: Macabeo for floral lift and acid, Xarel·lo for body and a salty edge, and Parellada for freshness. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are allowed too, and plenty of producers use them.
The Method
Prosecco uses the tank method, also called Charmat or Martinotti. The second fermentation happens in a sealed pressurised tank, usually over about thirty days, then the wine is bottled. It is quick, it is cheaper and it protects the fruit.
Cava uses the traditional method, the same one as Champagne. The second fermentation happens inside the bottle you buy, and the wine then rests on its dead yeast cells for a minimum of nine months. That contact is where the bread and biscuit flavours come from. The tiers go up from there: Reserva is at least 18 months, Gran Reserva at least 30, and de Paraje Calificado at least 36, per the D.O. Cava regulatory board.
If that process sounds familiar, it is the same one behind the big names in our Moët and Veuve Clicquot comparison.
The Taste
Prosecco: pear, green apple, honeysuckle and a soft, frothy bubble. Light, breezy and usually a little off-dry. It rarely tastes of bread or nuts, because it never sat on yeast long enough to pick that up.
Cava: lemon, green apple, almond and toast, with a firmer bubble and a drier, slightly bitter finish. That bitter edge is a feature, not a fault, and it is what makes Cava so good with salty food.
Brut, Extra Dry and the Label Trap
This is where most people get caught. On a sparkling label, Extra Dry is sweeter than Brut, which makes no sense in English and perfect sense in wine. The scale runs Brut Nature under 3 grams of sugar a litre, Extra Brut up to 6, Brut up to 12, Extra Dry 12 to 17 and Dry 17 to 32.
Most Prosecco is labelled Extra Dry or Brut. Most Cava is Brut or Brut Nature. That alone explains why Cava tastes drier to most people, before you get anywhere near the grapes.
The Price
They land in the same bracket, roughly the cost of a decent bottle of still wine. Cava usually gives you more for the money, because you are paying for a slower method. Prosecco is the one to buy in quantity when the room is full and nobody is analysing anything.
| Prosecco | Cava | |
|---|---|---|
| Country | Italy, mostly Veneto and Friuli | Spain, mostly Penedès in Catalonia |
| Main grape | Glera, at least 85% in DOCG | Macabeo, Xarel·lo, Parellada |
| Method | Tank, about 30 days | Bottle, minimum 9 months on lees |
| Tastes of | Pear, apple, white flowers | Lemon, almond, toast |
| Usual sweetness | Extra Dry or Brut | Brut or Brut Nature |
| Best for | Spritzes, parties, brunch | Tapas, fried food, dinner |
Which Should You Buy?
- Aperol Spritz or mimosas: Prosecco. The fruit survives the mixing, and the price survives the round.
- Fish and chips, croquettes, salty snacks: Cava. The acid and the bitter finish do the cutting.
- A big group with mixed tastes: Prosecco. Nobody has ever complained about it.
- You normally drink Champagne: Cava. It is made the same way and costs far less.
- A cocktail base: either, though Prosecco is the classic. Our French Kiss cocktail uses bubbles this way.
The Australian Twist
Australia grows a lot of Prosecco. The King Valley in north-east Victoria is the country’s biggest source of it, helped by generations of Italian families who settled there. The local versions are made the same way as the Italian ones and are often fresher, because they have travelled about four hours instead of four weeks.
Brown Brothers Prosecco NV
If you want the Prosecco side of this argument, start here. Serve it properly cold, at 6°C to 8°C, and pour it into a white wine glass rather than a flute.
- Made in the King Valley, Australia's Prosecco heartland, since 2007
- Apple and pear fruit with a dry, savoury edge
- Light and low in fuss, which is the point of Prosecco
- Cheap enough to open on a Tuesday
- It will not give you the toasty, bready thing; that is Cava's job
Honesty corner: our retailer does not currently stock a Cava, so the pick above is the Prosecco half of the comparison. If you want the Cava experience, look for a bottle marked Reserva or Brut Nature at your local shop.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between Prosecco and Cava?
Prosecco is Italian and gets its bubbles in a steel tank, so it tastes fruity and fresh. Cava is Spanish and gets them in the bottle with at least nine months on yeast, so it tastes drier and more toasty.
Is Cava or Prosecco better?
Cava is technically made the harder way and usually offers more for the money. Prosecco is easier to like and better in cocktails. Neither is better in the abstract.
Is Cava the same as Champagne?
It is made the same way, in the bottle, on the lees. It is not Champagne, because that name belongs to one region in France. Cava is the closest thing for a third of the price.
What does Brut mean on a Prosecco or Cava label?
Brut means up to 12 grams of sugar a litre. Extra Dry is actually sweeter at 12 to 17, and Brut Nature is the driest at under 3.
Which one is better for an Aperol Spritz?
Prosecco, every time. The recipe was built around it, and Cava’s toasty notes get lost under the Aperol anyway.
Is Australian Prosecco real Prosecco?
It is made from the same grape in the same way, and the King Valley has been doing it since the 2000s. The Italians dispute the name, but the wine in the glass is the genuine article.
Not sure where a bottle sits on the sweetness scale? Our guide to what off-dry wine means puts the whole range into grams per litre.
Planning to mix it rather than sip it? Our guide to Bucks Fizz vs Mimosa explains which ratio suits which bottle, and why cheap bubbles hide better in one than the other.
The slow method involves a riddling rack, which is a large part of why the two styles cost such different amounts.
South Africa has its own version of the Champagne method; see MCC vs Champagne.
Eggs are one of the trickiest things on a brunch table to match with wine, and bubbles win; our omelette pairing guide explains why bubbles beat almost everything else there.
This post contains affiliate links. If you buy through them we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It keeps the wine flowing and the reviews honest.
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