Cava and Cabrales Salad + Cava Faustino Brut Reserva #CavaWeek #Sponsored

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of #CavaWeek

Complimentary wine was provided for this post and this page may contain affiliate links.

However, all opinions expressed here are my own.

This week, a few of us are discussing the Cava DO (Denominación de Origin) for #CavaWeek. I received a nice trio of Cava* and was excited dive right in to my guided exploration. Muchas gracias to Susannah of Avvinare for coordinating!

Here are some of the articles that others have shared for #CavaWeek...

• Absence Makes The Palate Grow Fonder – Getting Reacquainted with Cava by ENOFYLZ Wine Blog
• Celebrating Fall with a Maset Brut Rose by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Four Estates Plus Four Varieties Add Up to Delicious #Cava by My Full Wine Glass
• Sparkling Wine Secrets: Seek DO Cava and Pair with SpanishPork Chops and Potatoes by Wine Predator...Gwendolyn Alley
• The New Town Art and Wine Stroll with Cava DO to Celebrate! by Our Good Life
• Wine Wednesday: Celebrating with Cava by Avvinare

Cava Faustino Brut Reserva

The second Cava I uncorked was the non-vintage Cava Faustino Brut Reserva. Bodegas Faustino is located in Oyón, Rioja Alavesa. When we pulled off the foil Jake asked why there was what looked like a Rembrandt painting on a Spanish wine. Good question!

Turns out that's a portrait of Faustino I who  reconstructed the vineyards with his father after the phylloxera outbreak; he was also the first in the family to bottle wine. This wine is a blend of 90% Macabeo (Viura) and 10% Chardonnay.

The wine pours a bright straw color with fine bubbles. The aromas in the glass were crisp green apple with hints of honeysuckle. On the palate, this was nicely balanced. The tinge of sweetness made me think of it as a foil to a salad.

Cava and Cabrales Salad 

To give my salad some Spanish flair, I crumbled some Cabrales (Queso de Cabrales) over the top. Cabrales is a blue cheese made in the artisan tradition in rural Asturias, Spain. 

Ingredients serves 2

Salad

• 4 cups salad greens, torn into bite-sized pieces
• 2 radishes, thinly sliced
• 1 persimmon, thinly sliced
• ¼ cup roasted pecans
• 4 Tablespoons Cabrales, crumbled (or any kind of bleu cheese that you have)
• freshly ground pepper

Dressing

• ½ cup sparkling wine (I used some leftover Cava)
• 1 cup Cabrales, crumbled (or any kind of bleu cheese that you have)
• ¼ cup buttermilk
• 1 Tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• freshly ground salt
• freshly ground pepper

Procedure 

Dressing

Place all ingredients for the dressing in a food processor. Pulse until well-combined and smooth. Adjust seasoning to taste.

Place the salad greens in a bowl. Drizzle with dressing and toss to coat. Divide the green onto two serving plates. Divide the radishes, persimmon, pecans, and Cabrales between the two salads. Grind black pepper over the top and serve immediately.

Stay tuned for my other posts about the remaining D.O. Cava wines. 

Find D.O. Cava on the web, on Facebook, on Instagram, on Twitter

*Disclosure: I received compensation in the form of wine samples for recipe development and generating social media traction. My opinions do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the organizer and sponsors of this event.