Mother’s Day falls on Sunday 30 March in the UK this year, when the trees are beginning to blossom, buds are breaking and there are signs of new life.

Flowers, plants and bulbs make for wonderful presents on Mothering Sunday, but your gifting skills can be elevated by a bottle or two of sparkling wine.

The list of recommendations below includes varying styles of sparkling wine from classic Champagne and Crémant to English sparkling and Prosecco. Prices range from under £20 to over £100.

Scroll down to see our selection of sparkling wines for Mother’s Day

Quick guide to sparkling wine styles:

• Champagne – Mostly made from Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, this must come from the French region of Champagne. It’s produced using the traditional method, with secondary fermentation taking place in the bottle.
• Traditional method – This refers to wines made using the same method as Champagne, where a second fermentation takes place in the bottle. The key examples are:
• Cava – Sparkling wine from Spain using both native grapes, such as Xarel·lo and Parellada, as well as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. Reserva and Gran Reserva Cavas undergo extended ageing in bottle, bringing additional complexity.
• English sparkling wine – The cool climate and limestone soils in southern England are similar to those in Champagne, producing many fantastic sparkling wines.
• Franciacorta – From the northern Italian region of Lombardy, this serious traditional method wine can be both fresh and complex.
• Crémant – There are eight appellations in France where Crémant sparkling wines can be produced, and local grape varieties tend to be used. Examples include Crémant de Bourgogne, Crémant de Limoux and Crémant de Loire.
• Other very good traditional method sparkling wines can be found in the USA, Australia, New Zealand and Brazil.
• Prosecco – Made in the Veneto region of northeast Italy from the Glera grape, using the tank – or charmat – method.
• Pétillant naturel – This is in fact the oldest method of making sparkling wine, also known as méthode ancestrale. Unlike Champagne, the wine is bottled before it finishes its first fermentation, so the bubbles develop in the bottle. They can be slightly cloudy due to sediment, fairly low in alcohol, with a gentle fizz and sometimes a touch of sweetness. For the more adventurous mothers out there, what’s not to like!

At a glance: top picks for Mother’s Day

Top Champagne pick under £50:

Ayala, Brut Nature, Champagne, France

Top supermarket Champagne pick:

Alexandre Bonnet, Waitrose Brut, Champagne, France NV – £24.99

Top splash-out Champagne pick:

Champagne Stroebel, Pour Toi! Brut Nature, Champagne, France – £119

Top traditional method pick:

Clotilde Davenne, Brut Extra, Crémant de Bourgogne, Burgundy, France – £20.95

Top Prosecco pick:

Bele Casel, Col Fondo Agricolo, Colli Trevigiani, Veneto, Italy 2021 – £22

Top off-the-beaten-track pick:

Domaine Giachino, Don Giachino, Vin Mousseux de France, Savoie 2019 – £36

Sparkling wines for Mother’s Day:

The wines below were tasted by Decanter’s editorial team and experts.

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You might find yourself looking at a supermarket shelf lined with bottles of Prosecco – as one does – to find that some are labelled as frizzante (plural, frizzanti) and others as spumante (plural, spumanti). Are they any different? Are they both in fact Proseccos?

They certainly can be. But they are indeed different, with each term denoting certain technical and stylistic characteristics.

Frizzante (fizzy) and spumante (sparkling) are Italian terms for sparkling wines with different levels of effervescence, i.e. with a different amount and strength of dissolved carbon dioxide (released in the form of bubbles when the bottle is opened). Wines labelled as frizzanti are only gently sparkling, while spumanti wine has significantly more pressure and bubbles.

Although regulations can vary slightly within each PGI or DOC, general regulations – harmonised across the EU for analogous terms – are as follows:

• Frizzante wines have between 1 and 2.5 bars of pressure at 20˚C. They are, by law, defined and referred to as semi-sparkling, and classified and taxed as still wines. Frizzanti can be released to market on crown cap.
• Spumante wines have a minimum of 3 bars of pressure at 20˚C. For quality sparkling wine, for example, one with a PDO or DOC, the minimum pressure is 3.5. (Note that most quality sparkling wines – such as Franciacorta, champagne or crémant – are sold with a pressure of between 5 and 6 atmospheres). Spumanti need to be released to market under cork and cage due to safety requirements (crown caps would not safely hold the pressure).

How is frizzante made

The amount of fizz in a sparkling wine is determined by the winemaking method and the amount of sugar added for the secondary fermentation, if there is one (more on that below). The latter will affect the amount of sugar that the yeasts consume during alcoholic fermentation, producing alcohol and carbon dioxide that is trapped inside the wine. This is released when the bottle is opened, producing those delightful bubbles.

By controlling the length of the fermentation or refermentation, either in vat or bottle, winemakers can condition the final style of wine – the longer the fermentation (i.e. the more sugars consumed and more carbon dioxide released), the more bubbles the final wine will have.

Controlled refermentation

Frizzante wines are most commonly a result of second fermentation in tank, in what is called the charmat method. This is the process used for most Proseccos and, by arresting fermentation before all the sugar is transformed into alcohol, a less fizzy and sweeter wine can be produced.

If this refermentation happens in bottle – as per the traditional method – we have what is called a ‘Rifermentato in bottiglia’. These are often a bit cloudy given that the remaining dead yeasts are still in suspension inside the bottle – like in an undisgorged champagne. The increasingly popular Prosecco Col Fondo is produced this way.

In one go

Instead of a second fermentation, effervescence can be a result of a single fermentation completed in bottle – the méthode ancestrale (ancestral method) of pétillant naturel fame. This effectively entails the conclusion of the first alcoholic fermentation – partially done in a fermentation vessel and temporarily suspended (usually by cooling the liquid) – after the wine is bottled, to then trap some carbon dioxide during the conclusion of the process. These wines are also often left undisgorged (sui lievitti) and sold under crown cap. Prosecco Col Fondo can also be produced this way.

Moscato d’Asti, on the other hand, relies on a partial alcoholic fermentation performed under pressure, in tank, so that carbon dioxide is not lost. Once alcohol level reaches 5%abv, the liquid is chilled and filtered to remove the yeasts, thus producing a slightly fizzy wine with the natural sweetness of the unfermented sugar.

Carbonation

In the case of carbonation, winemakers simply need to control the amount of carbon dioxide artificially added to the wine to achieve the desired frizzante style.

Styles and regions to look out for:

– Prosecco DOC – although most Proseccos fall under the spumante category (and all those at DOCG level are required to be fully sparkling, unless they are Col Fondos), there are Prosecco Frizzanti and Prosecco Col Fondo

– Emilia-Romagna – Lambrusco

– Piedmont – Moscato d’Asti (taste an Asti Spumante alongside to fully understand the difference in fizz levels); Barbera Frizzante; Freisa d’Asti

– Oltrepò-Pavese – Barbera Frizzante

When to drink frizzante

Frizzanti are inherently drinkable and enjoyable, making for ideal aperitifs and party crowd pleasers. But they are also versatile food companions, due to their subtle fizz and – especially in the rifermentato, sui lieviti iterations – incredible texture. Lambrusco with cheese, charcuterie and/or pizza is a classical pairing, but try also a Moscato d’Asti with roast chicken or sushi, a Prosecco Col Fondo with grilled prawns or a chilled Barbera Frizzante with barbecued meat and/or vegetables.

And does the level of fizz change the flavour of the wine itself? Strictly speaking, the amount of carbon dioxide does not affect a wine’s flavour. It can, however, affect our perception of aroma and flavour compounds. On the other hand, frizzante is generally intended as a fresh, openly aromatic, fruit-driven style, markedly different from traditional method sparkling (such as Champagne or Franciacorta) in which secondary and tertiary aromas, derived from winemaking and ageing, tend to predominate. Frizzanti tend to be made from grapes with a distinct varietal flavour profile, purposefully kept through the production process, making them usually very tasty wines.

What is frizzante called outside Italy

Semi-sparkling styles are, of course, not exclusive to Italy.

Here is a brief breakdown of the styles and nomenclature in other countries:

– Spain – as vino de aguja – Txakoli, from the Basque country, produces great examples, with incredible mineral drive and salinity.

– Portugal – as vinho frizante – Vinho Verde is the quintessential example, producing gently prickly wines, both white and red, ideal for summer drinking. But the country is also producing exciting pet-nats, especially in the Tejo and Lisboa DOCs.

– France – as vin pétillant – gently fizzy Muscadet is an absolute classic, perfect alongside an oyster platter.

– Germany – as perlwein.

And of course Pét-nat (pétillant naturel), in France and beyond, has had an exciting comeback, now featuring in wine bars across the globe.

Six Frizzanti to try:

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Michelle Cherutti-Kowal MW, Andy Howard MW and Susan Hulme MW tasted 198 wines with 1 Outstanding and 27 Highly recommended.

Prosecco: Panel tasting scores

198 wines tasted

Exceptional 0

Outstanding 1

Highly recommended 27

Recommended 138

Commended 23

Fair 7

Poor 2

Entry criteria: producers and UK agents were invited to submit their spumante sparkling wines from DOC Prosecco and Prosecco Rosé, DOCG Prosecco Asolo Superiore or DOCG Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore, with retail pricing at £7.99 or above.

Synonymous with sparkling wine now, Prosecco was relatively unknown outside Italy 20 years ago, yet today it is renowned worldwide, as evidenced by its meteoric rise in popularity – more than 600 million bottles were produced in 2022, of which over 70% is exported globally.

The area in northeast Italy where Prosecco is produced spans just under 40,000ha across the regions of Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia; the one constant is Glera, the white grape used for the vast majority of production, known for its fresh acidity and aromatic notes of apple blossom, peaches and lemons. Add carbon dioxide and a touch of residual sugar, and you have a fresh, fruity fizz that goes down a treat.

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores from the Prosecco panel tasting

Prosecco is sold under a few denominations related to the area where the grapes are grown. The large Prosecco DOC (28,000ha) is diverse in terroir and is known for fruity, light-bodied wines. In contrast, the DOCG regions of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore (approaching 9,000ha) and Asolo Prosecco Superiore (some 2,000ha) represent the historical centre of production – in the steep foothills of the Alps, they produce wines that are very aromatic but lean and steely, often tasting drier than their DOC counterparts.

Given the vast amount of production, one would expect variations in quality, but our judging panel was pleasantly surprised by the consistency found here, with 83% receiving scores of 86 points or higher. The Prosecco DOC wines were ‘light, easy-drinking wines that were designed for early consumption, but very few elevate themselves above this consistent baseline’, said Andy Howard MW.

For the wines from Prosecco DOC Treviso – a sub-zone of the wider DOC area – Susan Hulme MW found they had ‘in general, more character and better balance’. They were ‘worth looking out for’, according to Howard.

Prosecco DOC Rosé wines were less inspiring: no entries scored above 87pts. ‘It’s as if producers don’t seem sure of what exactly the style for pink Prosecco should be,’ said Howard – the allowed small addition of red wine (15% or less), seemed to mask Glera’s aromatic character in the examples we tasted.

See all Prosecco panel tasting wines

The UK is the top export market for Prosecco Superiore DOCG, so it wasn’t a surprise to see a high number of entries. Both Conegliano Valdobbiadene DOCG and Asolo DOCG performed well: more than 92% of entries scored 86pts or higher, and 21 wines 90pts or more. This category offers more fruit concentration, with acidity and residual sugar far better balanced than in its DOC counterparts. ‘I liked many of the wines from Asolo DOCG, which had a different, more gentle style than Prosecco DOC,’ said Hulme.

Without a doubt, the standout was Prosecco Superiore di Cartizze DOCG. Cartizze is a 108ha vineyard in Valdobbiadene considered the ‘grand cru’ of the entire region. Three of the four wines tasted were rated 90pts and above, with one (the 195th wine tasted, at the end of two long days!) managing to shine above all the rest and receiving an outstanding score of 95pts (see below).

The takeaway? The Prosecco category offers different things to different consumers. Prosecco DOC proved that, despite the high volumes of production, it still can produce good wines at an affordable price point.

But – as this tasting demonstrated – there are benefits to stretching the budget to a Prosecco Treviso DOC, or a DOCG.

Prosecco panel tasting scores

The judges

Michelle Cherutti-Kowal MW is a widely published wine writer, consultant, educator and WSET lecturer. She is a regular judge and contributor for Decanter, and from this year is the DWWA Regional Chair for Tuscany.

Andy Howard MW is a Decanter contributing editor and a DWWA Regional Chair for categories including Central Italy. A former wine buyer, he now runs his own wine consultancy Vinetrades, focusing on wine education, investment and sourcing.

Susan Hulme MW is a wine writer, editor, educator and presenter specialising in Italy. She runs her own wine training and consultancy company Vintuition and travels regularly to Italian wine regions. Now focusing more on her writing, she is Italian editor for The Wine Independent.

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Be prepared for an overwhelming sense of awe when you see the lush green leaves covering the rolling hills of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene for the first time, interrupted only by centuries-old stone buildings, brick towers and blue skies. These hills host some of the steepest vineyards in Italy – and some of the best sparkling wines, too, in the form of Prosecco Superiore DOCG.

It’s an area worth exploring over a couple of days in order to admire the manicured hills that have been a UNESCO world heritage site since 2019. And just an hour away lies Venice; a perfect excursion.

The south-facing vineyards which cover the slopes at 100-500m above sea level turn their backs to the forests on the north side of the hills, enjoying all the sun they can get. A moderate climate and a lot of rain, combined with constant winds, allows Glera, the main grape of Prosecco, to thrive. Other local varieties, such as Glera Lunga, Verdiso, Perera and Bianchetta Trevigiana, are also used in small quantities, along with some international grapes including Pinot Noir – which gives its colour to Prosecco rosé, which was approved as a DOC in 2020.

Most of the grapes for Prosecco DOC are grown on the plains, but the Prosecco Superiore DOCG grapes come exclusively from the dense hillside vineyards between Conegliano and Valdobbiadene. The even steeper hills of the Cartizze sub-region (just 108ha) and the ‘rive’ (43 individual localities), require heroic harvesting.

According to Elvira Bortolomiol, the current president of the Consorzio of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG (around 430 winemakers), the growth of Prosecco Superiore demonstrates how consumers are appreciating its quality. ‘We believe that the recognition of the hills of Conegliano Valdobbiadene as a UNESCO World Heritage Site has played an important role in giving visibility to its territory of origin, to this extraordinary beauty.’

The Prosecco road

The uniqueness of this territory can be best enjoyed on the Prosecco road (‘Strada del Prosecco’), created in 1966. It’s a 90km loop, best enjoyed on a vespa or e-bike. There are also hiking routes – such as the 15 km Prosecco loop (‘Anello del Prosecco’), which winds through some of the Valdobbiadene villages – to leisurely explore the area’s winemaking and gastronomic traditions.

Isidoro Rebuli, president of Strada del Prosecco e Vini dei Colli Conegliano Valdobbiadene, has seen the area grow into a well prepared international tourism destination. He believes that the denomination will continue to claim a higher status by learning from its own history, for example by paying attention to refermentation in the bottle, traditionally called Valdobbiadene Col Fondo.

If you are in the area in May, you might see the cyclists of the Giro d’Italia race whizzing through Valdobbiadene. In June, Conegliano Valdobbiadene Experience offers events such as wine treks, concerts and vineyard picnics. If you are visiting in early October, look for vintage cars in the Centomiglia race cruising along the hills and through the historic villages.

My perfect day in Prosecco

Morning

Wake up at Villa Clementina in San Pietro di Feletto – northwest of Conegliano – and go for a jog in the hills before returning for a breakfast surrounded by vineyards. Enjoy a wine tasting at Sorelle Bronca, where sisters Antonella and Ersiliana Bronca make three exceptional organic Prosecco Superiore DOCG Rive in a series called ‘Particelle’ from their historical family plots. They are also behind the Harvey Nichols brand of Prosecco Superiore DOCG, available in the UK.

Afterwards head to Villa Sandi, where you will be accompanied through underground cellars directly into the heart of a Palladian villa and winery. Try the Cartizze Brut – Villa Sandi is one of the first producers of this drier style of Cartizze.

Hop back to the other side of the hill for lunch at Trattoria alla Cima, where you can bite into juicy meat grilled on an open fire or savour a delicate basil risotto.

Afternoon

After lunch, take a tour at Bisol, a winery where you can appreciate the ‘grand crus’ of Prosecco. Bisol has worked hard to take Prosecco Superiore to new markets, and a visit to its historic cellar and a tasting of its crus is nothing short of a revelation. The Bisol1542 Edizione I Gondolieri bottling is the official Prosecco of the Venice Gondolier Association.

After Bisol, head to Bortolomiol winery, one not to miss when talking about Cartizze – or culture. Bortolomiol has restored a small 19th century silk mill and transformed it into a visitor’s centre, where a wine tasting is an education in the variety of Prosecco styles, interwoven with history. Try the Grande Cuvée del Fondatore Motus Vitae, dedicated to Giulio Bortolomiol, the creator of the first Prosecco Brut in 1960.

Then, if you have time, head to Latteria Perenzin in Conegliano for a cheese tasting paired with lesser-known local wines.

Evening

Stop back at base to freshen up and taste Villa Clementina’s range of Proseccos, before heading to Il Capitello restaurant for a luxurious dinner in a rustic setting, where the charismatic Possamai family welcomes you warmly.

Excursions to Venice

When you arrive in Venice (which can be done as a day trip) you will feel like you have stepped into a 16th century painting. Venice is an endless challenge for its own residents (transporting goods along canals, the swarm of tourists in the summer, and the occasional acqua alta). For the rest of us, it’s a gift of godly proportions.

A cicchetti and Prosecco crawl is a must while navigating the maze of calli and canals in Venice. Make sure to stop at Bar All’Arco near the Rialto bridge, the quintessential Venetian bacaro (wine bar) where you can try small bites along with some natural Prosecco.

Enjoy a glass in one of the campi (squares), or standing at a bar counter at the popular Cantine del Vino già Schiavi. Take a sweet break at pasticceria Rosa Salva sitting in Campo Santi Giovanni e Paolo – but watch out for the crafty seagulls hoping to steal your treat.

For an authentic seafood experience, dine at one of the established fish restaurants of the city, such as Al Covo or Antiche Carampane. Be sure to book your table in advance.

Venissa – An alternative Venice

To avoid the crowds and to see Venice like never before, consider taking a boat from Altino (a 10-minute drive from Marco Polo Airport) to Venissa wine resort on Mazzorbo island.

Gianluca Bisol (of Bisol Prosecco fame) revived a 1ha piece of land on the island of Mazzorbo to cultivate Dorona, long-thought to be extinct, and produces from this variety a golden-hued wine in handmade Venetian glass bottles, labelled literally with a gold leaf. Venissa has five rooms and hosts an osteria and a Michelin star restaurant. From Mazzorbo you can walk to Burano island, just over a wooden bridge, famous for its lace artisans and colourful houses.

Your Prosecco and Venice address book

Where to stay

Villa Clementina

Formerly known as Tenuta Contarini, a 19th-century farmhouse that has been transformed into a charming relais. Feel at home and let yourself be spoiled by the impeccable hospitality.

Cà Piadera

A farmhouse with comfortable rooms and great views. Enjoy the property’s own wine and produce.

Hotel Villa Abbazia

Treat yourself to this Relais & Châteaux inn, an 18th century mansion between Valdobbiadene and Conegliano with a restaurant and separate bistrot.

Where to eat

Trattoria alla Cima

With refined and homemade seasonal primi, and open-fire grilled meat, Isidoro Rebuli consistently offers good food with lovely views. Try Cima’s own excellent Prosecco Superiore DOCG, as well as other regional wines from the wine list.

Il Capitello

Offering creative antipasti such as picanha with artichokes, and seasonal primi such as asparagus risotto, Il Capitello’s speciality is grilled meat. Impeccable service from a family of restaurateurs.

Venissa

Young Italian chefs Chiara Pavan and Francesco Brutto focus on sustainability and turn the produce of their vegetable garden, along with wild herbs and seafood of the lagoon, into memorable dishes such as vine leaf chips and artemisia ravioli.

Al Covo

Al Covo uses quality ingredients from the Venetian islands and the Adriatic sea, like the pink oysters from the Po Delta, as well as from other regions, such as Chianina beef from Tuscany. Their wine menu is well curated and offers a chance to try excellent Prosecco Sui Lieviti (on the lees).

Antiche Carampane

This historical restaurant offers skillfully prepared traditional seafood specialities. Try classics like sardines in saor, or cuttlefish in ink. In the spring and autumn, don’t miss the fried moeche (soft-shell crab). The wine list includes a good selection of organic and natural wines.

What to do

Say cheese

Visit Latteria Perenzin for award-winning cheeses such as inbriago, aged in Glera grape pomace. Contact the lovely owner, Erika, for a private visit of the ageing cellar or to book an aperitivo with cheese tasting.

Give Grappa a chance

For a change of grape scene, visit Distilleria Bonaventura Maschio to see copper distillers and taste the Prime Uve Grappa distilled from fresh grapes. If you have more time, head west to Bassano del Grappa and visit Capovilla – be amazed by more than 60 types of Grappa made from various (some wild) fruits and herbs.

Appreciate art through food

When in Venice, visit the Gallerie dell’Accademia to admire The Feast in the House of Levi by Paolo Veronese, painted in 1573 and covering an entire wall.

Prosecco: How to get there

The nearest airport is Venice Marco Polo Airport. Conegliano is just a 30-minute drive north from the airport (about 50km). The smaller Treviso airport is closer to the wine region (about 35km) but less serviced.

Fast trains bring you to Venezia Santa Lucia train station from Milan (2.5 hours) or Rome (four hours), where you can exit straight onto a canal – as nowhere else in the world.

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The combined annual production of Prosecco DOC [exceeding 500 million bottles for the first time in 2020] and Prosecco DOCG [92 million bottles] has long since overtaken that of Champagne, which averages about 300 million bottles shipped annually. And easy accessibility has possibly created a certain over-familiarity and perception of uniformity among consumers. But Prosecco is evolving, offering diverse and exciting new routes into Italy’s most popular sparkling wine, in ways that challenge the stereotypes. As Luca Giavi, director of the Prosecco DOC consorzio says, the mindset needs revising. Today we have to think not of ‘Il Prosecco’, but of the plural ‘I Prosecchi’.

Conegliano Valdobbiadene Superiore DOCG

Modifications to the production norms in 2019 introduced two new categories into the Conegliano Valdobbiadene Superiore DOCG: extra brut (up to 6g/L residual sugar) and the bottle-refermented Sui Lieviti (on the lees). Incidentally, both categories were already officially recognised in the smaller DOCG of Asolo Prosecco, across the Piave river.

Bottle-refermented Prosecco – rather than by the commonly used Charmat ‘tank’ method – has long been produced in the DOCG area, but until recently it lacked official recognition. Following a method pre-dating modern vat refermentation, Sui Lieviti (also known as ‘col fondo’) is made by bottling still wine in early spring with its own sugar and fine lees to make a delicate, finely integrated bubbly and a bone-dry, tangy, citrusminerally character. The issue currently engaging producers is the carbonic pressure of this style of wine. Sui Lieviti is for full-on, bubbly ‘spumante’, while traditional wines, with roughly half the atmospheres, are officially ‘frizzante’.

Many producers, including the prominent Loris Follador at Casa Coste Piane and Christian Zanatta at Ca’ dei Zago, the winemaker who most closely represents the artisan tradition, have preferred not to move up into the spumante category on the grounds that the extra creamy texture that comes with it detracts from the character they wish to achieve in the wine. Others, such as Adami, Marsuret and Sorelle Bronca, make the more sophisticated spumante style without losing the slightly rustic authenticity. Both styles work.

If Sui Lieviti is about bubbles, the debate around the new extra brut category is about sugar. Despite the general trend towards ever drier styles, many producers have preferred not to take up the extra brut option and to stay in the comfort zone of the brut style (up to 12g/L residual sugar), where well-judged residual sugar helps to bring out the fruit and give flesh on the palate, without leaving a sensation of sweetness.

Brut wines tend to be more consistent than extra brut, but it could be argued that with their low sugar, the latter are a more direct expression of terroir. It has to be said, however, that not all sites are equally suited to the production of extra brut, and in this context the steep-sloped Rive sub-zones of the DOCG area acquire particular significance. The generally more subtle, delicately floral wines of Valdobbiadene can come across hard and lean in very dry styles, but can also have an exhilaratingly crisp, incisive purity if from, among others, the Rive of Colbertaldo (Miotto), Santo Stefano (Le Colture), Col San Martino (Bortolomiol), Farra di Soligo (Adami; La Farra), and Farrò (Sorelle Bronca). Wines from Ogliano in the Conegliano side of the DOCG (Biancavigna; Borgo Antico), on the other hand, are naturally broader and more structured, which makes for a very successful, rounded style of extra brut.

If bone-dry Prosecco is an invitation to revise expectations, late-bottled and mature vintages pose even more of a challenge to the common perceptions. In 2014, Paolo Bisol from Ruggeri put to one side a 4,000-litre vat and waited… He released the extraordinarily multifaceted Ruggeri, Cinqueanni (£55 The Great Wine Co) in 2019. The experiment proved that Prosecco can evolve finesse and complexity with age. The current vintage of Nino Franco’s outstanding Grave di Stecca Brut is 2015 (£20.32 Lay & Wheeler) and bottles back to 2008 are drinking perfectly (the 2013 is sublime). Also splendid are the 2016s from BiancaVigna, Merotto’s Cuvée del Fondatore, Bortolomiol’s Grande Cuvée del Fondatore and Ruggeri’s Vecchie Viti from 80-year-old vines (2019, £32.99 Valvona & Crolla). Though these may not be easy to find, they offer a glorious dimension to Prosecco that is rarely glimpsed, but which deserves to be cultivated.

Prosecco DOC Rosé 

The big news from Prosecco DOC in 2021 was the rollout of Prosecco Rosé – which finally received its official approval in late 2020.

Big is the operative word: the initial release was estimated at about 60 million bottles – a demonstration of the extraordinary productive potential of the zone, which stretches from Treviso in the Veneto across Friuli Venezia Giulia to Trieste on Italy’s eastern border with Slovenia.

Take-up of the Rosé DOC has been immediate, not least because more than half of the current Prosecco DOC producers were already making a generic sparkling rosé prior to the arrival of the new denomination. The task of the Prosecco consorzio, which coordinated the various stages of research that led to the creation of the new DOC, was to establish stylistic consistency and quality standards for this heterogeneous production and pave the way for what is destined to become the Italian pink sparkler. It would make an interesting case study.

Prosecco Rosé is based on a quite strictly defined cuvée of 85%-90% Glera and 10%-15% Pinot Nero (vinified as red wine). There was canvassing for the inclusion of native varieties such as Raboso in the Veneto or Refosco in Friuli Venezia Giulia, but Pinot Nero was the logical choice, since it has been widely grown in both regions since the late 19th century.

Refermentation is by the widely used Charmat method, in tank, and wines must age on the lees for a minimum of 60 days. Declaration of the vintage is mandatory.

Much of the research that went into the formulation of the production norms for Prosecco Rosé revolved around the fundamental issue of colour, with micro-vinification experiments juggling the variables of yield, percentages of the blend and time on lees.

The outcome is a shade of pink which corresponds closest to ‘peach’ on France’s Côtes de Provence scale and also, given the presence of Pinot Nero, recalls a pale Sancerre rosé. In terms of sugar levels, nearly three-quarters of the current production is extra dry (12-17g/L) and most of the rest is brut.

The consorzio’s declared objective is to maintain the charm and immediate appeal of Prosecco, with an extra touch of individuality. The first impression, in this regard, is that the wines hit the spot; the Pinot adds a little structure and a note of red fruit to the gentle floral character of the Glera. At the top end of the extra dry scale, the wines may come over a little sugary for some tastes, but the drier Prosecco Rosé styles add a quintessentially Venetian touch to light fish dishes at a candlelit supper.

A selection of high-scoring Conegliano Valdobbiadene Superiore DOCG and Prosecco DOC Rosé:

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Croatia wants to make dessert-style wine prošek a ‘traditional term’ under EU law, but Italian wine body Federvini said the move was unacceptable and too close to the Prosecco name.

A tussle at EU level is looming after the Croatian government’s formal application to register prošek was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 22 September.

In response, Federvini said Italy has a 60-day window to oppose the move, which it described as ‘an assault on our culture’.

Micaela Pallini, Federvini’s president, said that EU recognition for the term prošek would be ‘highly misleading for international consumers’ and would penalise Italy’s Prosecco exporters, even if the similarity between the two is in the name rather than the wine style.

While Prosecco is a sparkling wine, Croatian ‘prošek’ is a sweet, dessert-style wine made from dried grapes, notably in the Dalmatia region.

It must be made from grapes that contain at least 150° Oe (Oechsle degrees) of sugar, according to the application published in the EU Journal.

Prošek may be red or white, and the ‘colour may range from dark yellow with shades of old gold to reddish with brown shades’, the Croatian government application states.

Prosecco’s DOCG council reiterated its opposition to the Croatia’s prošek proposal. ‘Today we must work as a team to protect our product and the name Prosecco, but also to avoid creating dangerous precedents,’ said Elvira Bortolomiol, president of Consortium Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore.

Italy’s agriculture minister, Stefano Patuanelli, has announced a task force to assess options following Croatia’s formal application to register ‘prošek’.

‘We are now part of the technical table set up by the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, through which all the necessary counter measures will be put in place,’ said Bortolomiol.

A European Commission spokesperson could not be immediately reached for comment on the next steps in the process.

According to Federvini, the Prosecco market is worth €2bn per year, with exports accounting for 50% of this amount.

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In 2009, in a radical rewrite of the DOC, Prosecco ceased to be the name of a grape variety and became a wine of geographical origin, taking its name from a tiny village in the province of Trieste on the border with Slovenia.

On the basis of EU law, the move gave the original producers the exclusive right to the name Prosecco, but involved creating a new vineyard area stretching nearly 150km across the plains of the Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia.

Scroll down to see Richard’s tasting notes and scores for his 12 top Prosecco Superiore to try

To distinguish the hillsides from the rest, a DOCG was created for Prosecco di Conegliano Valdobbiadene Superiore, and a simple DOC for the flat lands. The strategic reset thwarted potential international competition, but it created domestic competition – the DOC has five times the production capacity of the DOCG, and significantly lower costs.

The urgent need for the Conegliano Valdobbiadene Superiore DOCG was to differentiate, to make both tradition and terroir count. As then-president of the producers’ consorzio Franco Adami said at the time: ‘We have to get over the idea that not all Prosecco is the same. We have created a Superiore category – now we have to demonstrate we can make superior wines.’ This is the challenge that has stimulated the emergence of pioneering trends and has driven the evolution of the DOCG over the past 10 years.

Prized slopes

The aim of making the terroir count was built into the DOCG of 2009, in the creation of the ‘rive’ category for designated growing areas. There are 43 of these (which some would argue is too many), and they approximate to the French ‘cru’ village.

The initial response from producers was tepid, but cru labelling has gathered momentum to the point that the rive has now been recognised in the national system as Unità Geografiche Aggiuntive. Among the few who believed in single-cru bottling from the outset was Masottina, the producer that can take credit for establishing Ogliano as Conegliano’s most interesting rive. A round palate with subtle fruit, depth of flavour and a distinctive savoury finish are the essential notes of the wines from these gently sloping hills in the eastern corner of the DOCG.

At the Valdobbiadene end of the DOCG to the west, the character changes. Merotto from Farra di Soligo, another top producer that came out immediately with a rive selection, illustrates the more floral, crisp and sprightly style of the wines from the steep terraces of the Col San Martino.

Single-vineyard wines

Other producers took the concept further with single-vineyard selections to counter the common perception of Prosecco as a mass-production wine. Franco Adami’s Vigneto Giardino is one of Prosecco’s historic sites. Steep-sloping, in a natural south-facing amphitheatre, the wine made from its grapes is the benchmark for the category of ‘dry’ Prosecco (17-32g/L of sugar). This seductive, fruit-driven style is slightly out of vogue these days, but the world would be a sadder place without it.

At the other end of the sugar scale, the fruit that is used for Sorelle Bronca’s Particella 68 is sourced from a tiny plot of old vines in the Rive Colbertaldo. The wine was originally a fruity ‘extra dry’ style (12-17g/L), but in 2011 Sorelle Bronca converted it to ‘brut’ (0-12g/L), making it one of the first high-profile Prosecco producers to reduce the sugar content of its top selection.

Villa Sandi, another producer that anticipated the trend for single-vineyard bottling, also broke the mould on sugar levels. Villa Sandi owns a spectacular 1.5ha vineyard on the upper slopes of Cartizze, the sub-zone within the DOCG that, by long tradition, has been the source of the sweetest of the denomination’s dry-category wines.

Nowadays, an increasing number of producers make a brut from Cartizze, but Villa Sandi was probably the first and certainly the most celebrated to do so with its La Rivetta.

Small scale, wide acclaim

On the subject of terroir, one provision of the 2009 norms that initially attracted little attention was the creation of a new DOCG for a strictly limited area around the charming hillside town of Asolo. It might have been viewed as an afterthought at the time, but in recent years, production of the firmer, more structured wines of Asolo Prosecco Superiore has gone from strength to strength. The pioneer of premium winemaking here is the organic, family-owned estate of Bele Casel, whose excellent handcrafted Proseccos continue to set the standard for the denomination.

Conegliano Valdobbiadene is traditionally an area of growers. A family with a few hectares of vines will typically sell its grapes rather than make and bottle its own wine, but there is also a nucleus of top-quality, small- scale grower-producers.

One of the pioneers is the Frozza family, whose origins go back to the turn of the last century and who set an example for many when they began their own production, to wide acclaim, in the 1990s.

Another is Silvano Follador, who represents a new, young generation of wine-growers. Follador inherited a small plot of prime vineyard and, fresh out of high school, made the life-defining decision to become a wine producer. A minimal interventionist in the vineyard and the cellar, he makes just two Prosecco Superiore wines, either extra brut or nature depending on the vintage, one of which – an absolute rarity – is a metodo classico.

Array of styles

Stylistically, Prosecco is far more diversified than it was 10 years ago. The carefree, semi- aromatic, fresh-fruit and floral profile remains a reference point, but it is no longer the default setting. Alongside it, in particular at the top end of producers’ ranges, a more ‘adult’ Prosecco – as Paolo Bisol from Ruggeri calls it – has developed. The style is dry (even austerely so, in brut nature versions) with more lees character and possibly the mature notes of autolysis, which used to be anathema to oenologists in Conegliano Valdobbiadene.

Ruggeri is one of its most influential proponents. The producer launched the bone-dry Vecchie Viti before brut became trendy and released an extra-brut label before the DOCG even contemplated such a thing (though the latest revisions now include it). Pushing the boundaries further, Ruggeri’s latest release is a subtly complex vat-aged wine called Cinqueanni, which ages on the lees for five years.

One of the revolutionary provisions of the 2009 DOCG was for vintage labelling, which prepared the way for longer vat and/or bottle ageing. One of the very first to successfully develop a riserva-style Prosecco was the house of Bortolomiol. It was one of the main architects of the post-war reconstruction of the wine industry in Valdobbiadene, and founder Giuliano Bortolomiol was an early promoter of the brut style in Prosecco. The brut nature Gran Cuvée del Fondatore created in his honour is a late- bottled special selection which defies preconceptions of Prosecco by evolving depth and complexity with age.

What’s old is new

Another element of stylistic diversification is, in fact, a return to the past. The wine traditionally known as ‘col fondo’ (or ‘sur lie’) is bottled in early spring with its own yeasts and allowed to slowly re-ferment, producing a completely dry Prosecco with tangy salty- lemon flavours and a delicate frizzante. Once a rustic product made for local consumption, it has become a fixture in the ranges of a growing number of wineries – some of which are developing a cult following.

Col fondo wines were excluded from the original DOCG, but the style has been rehabilitated in the latest update under the name ‘sui lieviti’. If credit had to go to a single producer for this resurgence, it would have to be Casa Coste Piane, where the charismatic winemaker Loris Follador dedicates virtually his entire production to it.

The other top-quality estate committed almost exclusively to sui lieviti is Cà dei Zago, where brother and sister Christian and Marika Zanatta turned their backs on their conventional oenological training to espouse an artisan winemaking style, and this year underlined their commitment to it with the new 2019 vintage single-vineyard Vigneto Mariarosa.

In the 10 years since the game-changing DOCG of 2009, Prosecco Superiore producers have risen to the challenge of demonstrating that not all Prosecco is the same, and the demonstration lies in the glass. It is not just that the wines from the hills of Conegliano-Valdobbiadene are better than they were a decade ago. Prosecco Superiore today has personality – or, rather, personalities. These are the expressions of terroir, but they also express the talent and commitment of the growers and winemakers in this unique corner of the Veneto.

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What do you get when you cross two wine categories that have enjoyed stratospheric success? Even greater success, surely? Prosecco and rosé wine have been such a hit, separately, with consumers, that it seems strange the category of rosé Prosecco has only just launched to market.

Though it’s long been in the pipeline, the production of Prosecco DOC rosé was only approved by the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, Food & Forestry in May 2020, and by EU officials in late October. By the time the category was officially launched, to great fanfare, in late November, 84 wineries had produced more than 12 million bottles of 2019 vintage Prosecco rosé.

Vintage dated

DOC rules state that Prosecco rosé may include between 10% and 15% Pinot Noir alongside Prosecco’s signature Glera grape. Wines must undergo secondary fermentation for at least 60 days before they can be released, and must be ‘millesimato’ (meaning that a minimum of 85% of the grapes must come from the vintage stated on the label). Wines can be classified as either (from the driest) brut nature, extra brut, brut or extra dry, with no sweet version allowed. The vast majority of wines are brut (0-12g/L residual sugar, but in practice, 6-12g/L) or extra dry (12-17g/L).

It is estimated that between 40m and 50m bottles of the 2020 vintage will be made – accounting for around 10% of Prosecco DOC production – with around 80% of this destined for export markets, according to the regional wine council, the Consorzio Tutela Prosecco DOC. The 2020 vintage wines are set to be released from this month (January 2021), the Consorzio said.

No DOCG Prosecco rosé category is planned.

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These are generally wines to be enjoyed young, while fresh and full of primary fruit flavours. Of the 19 samples that we tasted that have UK retail availability, 14 were made in a brut style, with three vinified as extra dry (confusingly sweeter than brut). These were our favourites:

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Italy is the world’s leading producer of sparkling wine by volume, a feat which has largely been achieved due to Prosecco’s popularity.

The vast Prosecco DOC accounts for approximately 80% of all production. It produces approximately 485 million bottles every year from over 23,000 hectares which stretch across nine provinces in Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia. These are the wines found on the shelves of every supermarket and wine merchant: perfectly drinkable in many different scenarios, very affordable, but not the best the region has to offer.

Above the Prosecco DOC in the quality stakes lie the two DOCGs of Prosecco Asolo and Prosecco Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Superiore, divided by the Piave river. While the focus for the vast majority of consumers is understandably on the more affordable and available DOC wines, the DOCGs are where the interplay between the Glera grape and the terroir really comes into play, producing deliciously characterful wines that elevate Prosecco to the big leagues.

Prosecco Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Superiore is by far the larger of the two DOCGs and is the one this article will focus on.

Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Superiore

Located in the Treviso province between the towns of Conegliano to the east end and Valdobbiadene to the west end, the Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Superiore DOCG includes 8,431ha of vineyard in total, including sites used for the production of the subzones of Rive and Cartizze. 7,971ha are devoted to Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Superiore itself.

• Production: Approximately 86.3 million bottles in 2019 *92 million including Rive and Cartizze
• Producers: 182
• 15 Communes: Conegliano, San Vendemiano, Colle Umberto, Vittorio Veneto, Tarzo, Cison di Valmarino, San Pietro di Feletto, Refrontolo, Susegana, Pieve di Soligo, Farra di Soligo, Follina, Miane, Vidor and Valdobbiadene
  

This zone is characterised by steep hillsides covered in ‘ciglione’ – grass-covered terraces which give the area its picture-postcard looks. Distinct in appearance, and full of biodiversity, this is a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Rive Superiore

The Rive Superiore subzone is a qualitative step up from Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Superiore. The wines must be made from any one of 43 designated communes or hamlets high in the hills. The wines must be spumante (fully sparkling), hand-harvested and from a single vintage. These stricter regulations combined with the prime sites of the Rives ensures these wines are high quality and expressive of terroir.

Rive bottlings only represent a tiny drop of Prosecco Superiore production, with 2.1 million bottles produced in 2019 from 352ha.

Valdobbiadene Cartizze Superiore

The ‘grand cru’ of Conegliano-Valdobbiadene, Cartizze Superiore covers just 108ha in the steep hills of Santo Stefano and Saccol in Valdobbiadene, producing around 1.4 million bottles in 2019. The natural amphitheatre consists of marl, sandstone and clay with high sodium content.

The vines here have the highest average age in the entire DOCG, between 60 and 70 years old, and the maximum temperatures are slightly lower than other areas of the DOCG due to the movement of fresh air from east to west.

Traditionally, the wines produced here are Dry, but it’s the balance and freshness that comes with it that has given Cartizze Superiore (or ‘Superiore di Cartizze’) its exceptional reputation.

Prosecco Superiore soils & terrain

The soils vary throughout the Prosecco Superiore DOCG.

In the west, around Valdobbiadene, marly soils absent of stones lie on steep slopes running north to south, approximately 250-300 metres above sea level. Good water retention provides the vines with above-average water throughout the growing season, leading to higher than average yields. The wines made from this area tend to be soft and delicate with floral overtones.

The majority (approximately 70%) of the northern sector of the DOCG is situated on conglomerate soils on steep slopes extending from east to west, ranging from 150-450m in altitude. The vines here can suffer from drought due to the steep inclines and shallow soil depth affecting the ground’s water-holding capability. The wines here tend to have ripe fruit flavours, sometimes even tropical fruits, with floral notes.

The south of the DOCG, encompassing Conegliano, is made up of feletti soils. The wines here can be round and rich, with ripe fruit flavours.

The east of the region is made up of morenic soils. The driest area in the DOCG with a high diurnal temperature range, the vines here benefit from fresh air running down from the Alps every morning, leading to wine which can be spicy and fruity.

The small sub-zone of Cartizze lies on calcareous soils on steep, south-facing slopes. Lower maximum temperatures are due to fresh air moving through from east to west, and the vines don’t suffer water stress as the soils retain reserves. The wines here tend to have peachy, floral notes, occasionally tropical fruits.

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Walking in the vineyards of Conegliano Valdobbiabene, it’s difficult not to succumb to vertigo. You have to catch your breath frequently as much for the steep incline as for the staggeringly beautiful landscape.

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‘There is a natural limit between the DOCG and DOC,’ says young talent Martino Tormena, at the helm of his family’s Mongarda estate. ‘When there is fog, it stops at that road.’ From high up in Col San Martino, to the northwest of Treviso, he is pointing to the SP32 below, which separates the hills of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore from the plains of the larger Prosecco area beyond.

‘My first objective is to give value to the territory of Conegliano Valdobbiadene to differentiate it from Prosecco DOC,’ continues Tormena. Both denominations make sparkling wine from the Glera grape. In situ, the difference between the two is rather obvious, as well as why the former normally commands a higher price. These precipitous slopes are cultivated largely by hand and require up to 800 hours of work per hectare each year versus 150 hours on the plains.

Positioned between the Alps and the Adriatic sea, Conegliano Valdobbiadene is made up of a series of hills extending from east to west. The vineyards are principally south-facing and rise from 50m to 500m above sea level. The combination of altitude and exposure helps Glera retain fresh acidity while achieving sufficient ripeness. Along with sunshine, rain is equally abundant, which suits drought-intolerant Glera just fine. Though thin-skinned and sensitive to mildew, it benefits from alpine and marine breezes. ‘The vegetation as well as the grape bunches remain well-ventilated and dry, while the slopes ensure optimal water drainage,’ explains Cinzia Sommariva of Sommariva.

The area is an ancient sea and lake bed with assorted geological origins. In the west, towards the town of Valdobbiadene, the hills resemble peaks of violently whipped egg whites and the vines seem to sit on top of one another. Here the soil contains pockets of glacial deposits from the Dolomites with conglomerates of rock and sand. The wines are typically graceful, sometimes vertical and predominantly floral. In the east, around Conegliano, the slopes are more undulating like gentle waves. The soil is less rocky and characterised by clay and limestone. Along with the slightly warmer climate, this gives more richly fruited, weightier Prosecco Superiore. But these are broad generalisations.

‘Each micro-zone has diverse characteristics which influence the aromas, flavours, structure and even salinity of the wine,’ declares Il Colle’s Fabio Ceschin.

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Sites vs slopes

Herein lies the strength of Conegliano Valdobbiadene. To truly differentiate between brand Prosecco and Prosecco Superiore DOCG, the region’s top players are striving to highlight their varied terroir in the glass, to make the best Prosecco.

When the area was elevated to DOCG in 2009, it included the introduction of 43 Rive (‘steep slopes’ in local dialect). However, rather than single vineyards, the Rive are sub-zones based on administrative boundaries of the communes and hamlets which give each its name. The category has provided a broadening of many estates’ ranges. BiancaVigna now offers two separate Rive bottlings. ‘In Soligo, the rocky terrain and calcareous soil produce a marked minerality,’ says owner Elena Moschetta. It contrasts with the Rive of Ogliano, which is rich in clay, resulting in a more structured wine.

Despite extensive geological and climatic studies, the Rive have yet to exhibit a definitive identity for each. This may be more apparent in time. However, they extend over large areas and are not necessarily uniform throughout. As such, Mongarda does not produce Rive wines. ‘We have more than one vineyard in the Rive of Col San Martino but they don’t have the same characteristics,’ Tormena explains. Instead, he uses the different sites to craft a Zero Dosage and an Extra Dry. The former hails from a warm, south-facing vineyard giving a round, full wine with little need for residual sugar. The Extra Dry comes from a cooler, east-facing plot and is left with 12g/L sugar to give balance. ‘Putting them together in a single Rive wine would be foolish,’ he declares.

Others are honing in on terroir through single-vineyard bottlings. The region’s first was Adami’s Giardino Vineyard, which the estate produced as long ago as 1933. However, the trend for separate ‘cru’ or parcel bottlings is more recent. The Nino Franco estate released its first San Floriano Vineyard in 2003. When the Rive were subsequently introduced, owner Primo Franco changed the name to Vigneto della Riva di San Floriano to indicate that it is not just from the broader Rive of San Floriano, but a specific vineyard within it. ‘It’s important not to confuse single vineyards with the Rive,’ stresses Franco.

Seeking self-expression

Site-specific wines are on the rise, and in some cases producers eschew the Rive altogether. ‘We prefer to specify the cru rather than the Rive because it is an estate identity,’ asserts Antonella Bronca, one of two sisters who co-own Sorelle Bronca. Their Particella 68 and Particella 232 are within the Rives of Colbertaldo and Farrò respectively, though these aren’t featured on the labels. In its debut release, Particella 232 comes from just 1.5ha of 40- to 60-year-old-vines on morainic clay. ‘The significant diurnal temperature difference preserves aromas and freshness, so we bottle it as a Brut Nature,’ says Bronca.

Single vineyard bottlings do not fall into the denomination’s official quality hierarchy, though the best equal (or exceed) some Rive or even the DOCG’s Cartizze top level. The category also highlights the growing tendency to drier-style wines. While not all follow this trend, those that do argue that less sugar gives greater transparency of terroir.

Leaving residual sugar is a function of tradition, though there is a link with terroir. Glera is bitter if harvested when not ripe. In cooler years or less favourable sites, sugar counters bitterness and tart acidity. However, with climate change, producers point to greater ripeness in Conegliano Valdobbiabene than in the past.

Residual sugars are decreasing across all sweetness categories (Brut, Extra Dry and Dry) – which also corresponds to what the market is demanding. But sugar has another function according to Paolo Bisol, son of Ruggeri founder Giustino. ‘There are some aroma molecules which are enhanced by sugar, so they are easier to smell and more expressive on the palate,’ he states. He is one of more than 100 producers who own a tiny slice of Cartizze. Jutting out confidently like a thrust stage with dizzyingly steep slopes, this exalted 107ha subzone has long been acknowledged for yielding the region’s ripest, most intensely flavoured wines. Despite this, they have traditionally been made Extra Dry (12-17g/L) or Dry (17-32g/L). Bisol defends this style as Cartizze’s true expression, however he also recognises its limited applications, particularly for restaurants. From the 2017 vintage, Ruggeri has released small quantities of a Brut. It still demonstrates the lusciousness and complexity of Cartizze, but with a mouthwatering drier edge.

Fermentation notes

Fundamental to Prosecco Superiore is how it’s made. Bubbles help transport Glera’s delicate fragrances. While there are experimental traditional method bottlings, the tank method is ideal for capturing Glera’s dainty fruitiness, since long bottle ageing on lees can overpower its subtleties. Some producers have adopted the ‘Charmat lungo’ (long) method which involves keeping the wine on lees in tank after the second fermentation, but even they are cautious. ‘After four-and-a-half to five months it develops too many yeasty notes and you lose the character of Prosecco,’ says Moschetta.

The exception is the region’s ‘Col Fondo’. This dry, semi-sparkling wine goes through its second fermentation in bottle and is left with the lees. Cloudy in appearance with an intrinsic bready character, it is generally released after a couple of months for enthusiastic, immediate quaffing. While it is debatable whether the wine’s specific terroir is discernable, ‘it represents the tradition of the territory of Conegliano Valdobbiadene’, says Maurizio Favrel of Malibràn. He holds his Credamora Col Fondo back for a year, allowing the leesiness to integrate and develop into a wondrously creamy citrus character.

Even the choice of yeast for the first fermentation comes up in the discussion of terroir. Like many in the region, La Tordera inoculates with commercial strains. However, these vary according to the specific attributes of each site. One strain might be used to bring out inherent floral nuances while another emphasises tropical characteristics.

‘In an area with greater thermal amplitude, we want to highlight the fruity aspect, because the grapes give very perfumed wines with high acidity,’ explains Paolo Vettoretti at La Tordera.

Others prefer native yeast fermentations. At the Marchiori estate, Umberto Marchiori has researched the subject extensively. ‘Each vineyard has a unique profile in its population of fungi,’ he explains. ‘Its individuality can only be articulated with indigenous yeasts.’ Similarly, Antonella Bronca at Sorelle Bronca allows spontaneous fermentation for parcel selections. ‘We take a greater risk of bacterial spoilage with wild yeast, but if it goes well, it is a more authentic product,’ she argues.

Subtle difference

To give the grape its full name, Glera Tonda is the vehicle which expresses Conegliano Valdobbiadene’s territory. Along with this, up to 15% of other authorised grapes are allowed. These include Chardonnay and the Pinot family. Glera is a rather meek variety though. ‘If you add these international grapes, you can no longer distinguish Glera,’ asserts Tormena. Conversely, a smattering of historical local varieties can be found in old vineyards. Il Colle, Mongarda, Sorelle Bronca and Marchiori are among those who include them in their Prosecco Superiore. Rather than overwhelm Glera, they add subtle and appealing nuances.

‘These grapes are adapted to this specific place and part of its patrimony,’ says Marchiori, who is replanting a handful from a massal selection of old vines. Besides including them in his 5 Varietà Prosecco Superiore, he vinifies small lots separately to display the personality of each. Bianchetta offers structure, body and spice; Perera intense pear; Verdiso freshness, acidity and a gorgeous rosewater twist; and Glera Lunga salinity, citrus and herbal notes. ‘The idea is to have more voices, which is advantageous in terms of flavours, longevity and identity,’ he says.

Terroir is fluid in its definition, and how it is conveyed is equally open to interpretation. While a quality difference between the DOCG and DOC is often apparent, identifying subzones and individual sites within Conegliano Valdobbiadene may be trickier.

However, after a week tasting nothing but Prosecco Superiore, I was still thirsty for another glass. This speaks not just to its tremendous drinkability, but to a delicious and captivating diversity.

Michaela Morris is a widely published wine writer, educator, judge and speaker based in Canada, who works frequently in Italy.

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Did the Aussies get it wrong? Perhaps Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay aren’t the right grapes for Down Under. Surely this is an irreverent, preposterous suggestion. These grapes have enjoyed raging success.

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Yet it is impossible to ignore the increasing number of labels touting grapes such as Montepulciano, Arneis or Sagrantino. While they aren’t threatening the hegemony of French varieties, Italian grapes are unequivocally on the rise in Australia.

Rather than approaching this new frontier with an overly confident swagger, producers are adopting Italy’s native grapes with guileless enchantment. Acclaimed Riesling producer Stephanie Toole at Mount Horrocks in South Australia’s Clare Valley went to the dark side after tasting Nero d’Avola in a wine bar in Rome. ‘I’d never tried it, nor even heard of it before,’ she admits. She is now crafting one of Australia’s finest examples.

Beyond the grape varieties themselves, the style of wine they produce has appealed to winemakers’ sensibilities. ‘I want savoury, medium-bodied, textural wines that have some tannin and grip,’ says Sam Scott. His La Prova label drinks like a love letter to Italy.Stephen Pannell, who makes wine in the maritime region of McLaren Vale in South Australia, sees them as a better fit with the local lifestyle and food. ‘I’m aware of living next to the ocean, yet we are renowned for making big red wines. Those two things don’t sit well with each other,’ he argues. Indeed, the region’s delicate King George whiting and Kangaroo Island squid beg for restrained, refreshing whites. Enter Fiano and Vermentino.

Geographic spread

Soul-searching in Australia is not new, and the rise of Italian grape varieties has been simmering for the last 40 years. Boasting the country’s first commercial plantings of Italian varieties, the Montrose winery in Mudgee, New South Wales, released a Sangiovese in the late 1970s, though it was discontinued after a few vintages. The mantle was then taken up by Coriole’s Mark Lloyd, who established a vineyard in McLaren Vale in 1985.

‘My inspiration for planting Sangiovese was questioning why we didn’t have anything from Italy, and why there weren’t more characters or differences,’ Lloyd explains.

Australia has been strongly dominated by just a handful of French varieties for some time. ‘It’s like vinous racism,’ declares Pannell.

The stampede for Italian grape varieties is particularly palpable in McLaren Vale. Gill Gordon-Smith, who makes tiny quantities under her Fall From Grace label, asserts: ‘They have given the region a point of difference from Shiraz, especially for small producers.’

The landscape here even bears some resemblance to Italy. The hills conjure up Tuscany while, looking out to the ocean, it evokes Sardinia or Sicily. After World War II, numerous southern Italians migrated to McLaren Vale. Many worked as market gardeners and established vineyards. Though Italian varieties weren’t readily available at the time, now growers like the Maglieri family at Serafino, the Grilli family of Primo Estate and the Zerella family are proudly embracing the grapes of their homeland.

Well adapted

Beyond the Vale, Italian grape varieties have taken hold throughout South Australia. From Langhorne Creek to Adelaide Hills, through Barossa and Riverland and all the way to Clare Valley, plantings of Aglianico, Barbera, Lagrein, Mammolo and Zibibbo are popping up. ‘They grow brilliantly and are made for our Mediterranean climate,’ says Scott.

A key selling point is the ability these grapes have to retain acidity even at full flavour ripeness. Adjusting wine for acidity is common in Australia and usually necessary for balance. However, for her Clare Valley Nero d’Avola, Toole doesn’t need to do any manipulation. ‘The acid is just perfect,’ she states. At the nearby Koerner winery, brothers Damon and Jonathan Koerner work with varieties such as Sangiovese and Vermentino for this very reason. ‘We choose grapes we think are suited to this area and climate,’ says Damon. ‘Chardonnay isn’t, and personally I don’t think Shiraz is either because here in Clare you have to add so much acid.’

Italian grapes in Australia

Top five white grapes (by estimated tonnes harvested, 2018)

Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains (aka Moscato Bianco) 22,322t

Prosecco (officially known as Glera in Italy) 7,082t

Moscato Giallo 2,785t Fiano 2,075t

Vermentino 1,959t

Others Arneis, Bianco d’Alessano, Biancone, Falanghina, Friulano, Garganega, Grechetto, Greco, Grillo, Inzolia (officially Ansonica), Malvasia Istriana, Pecorino, Ribolla Gialla, Trebbiano group, Verdicchio, Verduzzo, Zibibbo

Top five red Italian grapes (by estimated tonnes harvested, 2018)

Sangiovese 3,996t

Lambrusco family 1,884t

Dolcetto 973t

Nero d’Avola 898t

Montepulciano 760t

Others Aglianico, Aleatico, Barbera, Brachetto, Colorino, Lagrein, Mammolo, Marzemino, Nebbiolo, Negroamaro, Piedirosso, Sagrantino, Schioppettino, Teroldego, Uva di Troia

Heat and drought tolerance are an equal draw, especially as climate change has exacerbated weather extremes. In the particularly dry, hot conditions of 2018, ‘the French grape varieties struggled, but not the Italians – they just soldiered through it’, says Scott. Since the late 1990s, the Australian Wine Research Institute has been educating the industry about climate change and the solution of alternative Mediterranean grapes. Brad Hickey and Nicole Thorpe of Brash Higgins took heed after a trio of hot vintages from 2007 to 2009. ‘We were the first in McLaren Vale to plant Nero d’Avola and removed a block of Shiraz,’ recalls Hickey. While this was considered foolhardy from a commercial standpoint, Hickey estimates that there are now 30 people growing it.

Healthy concern

Unshackled by the kind of appellation regulations in place in Europe, winemakers have greater freedom to play with these grapes. Nevertheless, Australia has its own constraints. Strict regulations on plant material entering the country mean producers can’t simply arrive home with Nebbiolo cuttings from their favourite Barolo cru and stick them in the ground. Incoming vines are quarantined, cultivated, then tested for virus. If, and only if, a plant is clean is it released. The vine then needs to be propagated. It is a lengthy process. Toole put herself on the waiting list for Nero d’Avola in 2003 and wasn’t able to produce a wine until 2012.

Vine nurseries are therefore fundamental in the growth of alternative varieties in Australia. Yalumba’s Barossa nursery is a notable source, while Chalmers’ Victoriabased operation specialises exclusively in Italian cultivars. It has partnered with the Vivai Cooperativi Rauscedo of Fruili, which is the world’s largest vine nursery. To date, Chalmers has made almost 40 native Italian grape varieties available to Aussie growers. ‘We’ve sold over two million vines of these varieties to between 300 and 400 different producers,’ estimates owner Kim Chalmers.

As impressive as this is, not every desired grape has made it through. ‘I would like to have planted Nerello Mascalese five years ago but it’s still not available,’ says Chester Osborn of d’Arenberg, who is already working with Sagrantino and Aglianico.

On the flip-side, Chalmers’ latest imports include popular grapes such as Falanghina, Pecorino and Ribolla Gialla. However, Chalmers insists that, rather than fashion, her first consideration is viticulture. She focuses on grapes that are suited to warm climates and resilient to the effects of climate change.

‘Our hit list of attributes are thick skins, loose bunches, very early or very late ripening (so that we are picking before the majority of heat or well after), heat and drought tolerance, and high natural acidity,’ she explains. She then looks at what tastes good.

Front runners

Italian grape varieties span Australia from as far west as Margaret River all the way east to New South Wales. Though still far from mainstream, they are no longer outliers as they were when Mark Lloyd and his cohorts Garry Crittenden and Mark Walpole in Victoria started championing them. The tipping point will be when big companies such as Casella or Treasury Wine Estates get behind them.

For the time being, producers are still trying to determine which grapes do best where. Jeffrey Grosset struggled with Aglianico in the Clare Valley for seven years and it didn’t ripen. ‘It was too lean. Most of it went down the drain,’ he confesses. With time, patterns might emerge, such as Nero d’Avola and Fiano in McLaren Vale.

It is also too soon to talk about a definitive Australian style, though current releases are impressive. What is most stunning is the brilliant, mouthwatering natural acidity and reasonable alcohol levels.

Whites are being made without oak or with neutral oak and everyone is talking texture. Fiano is truly a standout, with a range of expressions. Some are made exclusively in stainless steel, others go through partial barrel fermentation, and lees contact varies. La Prova, Grosset and Bondar are just a few to look out for.

As for Vermentino, a number of producers are trying too hard to mimic Sauvignon Blanc, but Oliver’s Taranga makes a lovely version comparable in quality to the winery’s excellent Fiano. Meanwhile, for something completely different, Koerner offers two very distinct Clare Valley Vermentinos.

Aiming high

For the reds, there are scores of mid-weight examples loaded with intriguing flavours. Oak, gloriously, is rarely overdone. The fruit tends to have a glossier sheen and tannins are typically less assertive than in the Italian counterparts. Sagrantino may be the exception to this, though it generally has plush fruit to support. Aphelion in McLaren Vale is aiming for refinement and the embryonic 2018 shows promise. Montepulciano (or Monte as the Aussies affectionately call it) is fruity yet polite, and lacking its rustic edge. Fall From Grace has just released a dry, dark rosato version along the lines of a Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo. Above all, Nero d’Avola is a winner.

Considered Italy’s most noble varieties, Sangiovese and Nebbiolo will likely come under the most scrutiny. For Sangiovese, Coriole is still a reference. Zerella is going for a long-aged, Brunello-esque version whereas Koerner and McLaren Vale’s Juxtaposed are making a juicy-fruit style.

In terms of Nebbiolo, it takes a certain fanatic to tangle with this finicky grape. Stephen Pannell, as well as Luke Lambert in Yarra Valley and Pizzini in King Valley, are among the most gorgeous successes.

As difficult as it is not to make comparisons with Italy, Australia’s producers are adamant that they are not trying to make wines that look like something else. ‘We need to create our own industry, not copy,’ says Pannell. ‘That requires creativity, ingenuity and bravery.’

Australia has a solid track record of this. Surely it won’t be long before wines made from Italian grapes are sitting next to Australian benchmarks of French varieties.

Morris’ top Australian wines made with Italian grapes

The first 15 wines were included in the original feature in the June 2019 issue of Decanter magazine. The following wines are an additional selection exclusively for Decanter Premium members. 

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There is still plenty of scope to promote the quality image of the best Prosecco wines, according to Bisol's management team, which has revamped its range and believes the term 'peak Prosecco' underestimates this part of the market.

Premium Prosecco producer Bisol recently unveiled its new image and product range at Quaglino’s restaurant in London, four years after the brand was acquired by the Lunelli Group that also owns the Trentodoc sparkling wine company Ferrari.

The move comes at a time when some people have suggested the UK is now approaching ‘peak Prosecco’.

Last year, category growth slowed to the smallest increase in sales since 2011. Analysts are predicting that sales will continue to rise for the next two to three years after which the rate of increase will continue to decline.

Matteo Lunelli, CEO of the Lunelli Group and vice president of Bisol shrugged off such concerns.

‘Prosecco is still growing at a global level, but so far consumers have really only focused on the category rather than the producer.’

‘We see a brand opportunity for Bisol by highlighting the difference in quality between Prosecco and Prosecco Superiore. Essentially, we want to take Bisol to the next level once again in the UK, especially in the on trade and independent merchants.’

Bisol’s President, Gianluca Bisol, whose ancestors first tended vines in Valdobiaddane in 1542, was one the first to conquer the UK market.

He recalled a very different era.

‘When I joined the family company in 1987 Prosecco was only sold in Lombardy and Rome.

‘Thirty-one years ago, there were just 30 producers and only about 25 million bottles produced. People thought that was the high point of Prosecco and that the UK would never be weaned off Champagne. And look what happened.

‘Now we want to make Bisol the reference point for Superiore and lift the image of premium, terroir-focused DOCG Prosecco.’

With Ferrari’s investment, Bisol has made big investments in quality over the last four years and has revitalised the range, which now includes five different styles of Superiore made from five different soil types in Valdobiaddane’s steep hillside vineyards.

Bisol also owns 1.5 hectares of vineyard in the famous Cartizze hill.

The Jeio range has also been revamped and now consists of two styles, Brut and Extra Dry, aimed more at casual dining and celebrations.

The UK was and will remain a key market for Bisol, along with the US where a similar strategy will apply.

‘We’re not interested in the low end of the Prosecco market and we’re never going to be the cheapest,’ said Lunelli.

‘You can’t really grow the overall Prosecco production but with a brand like Bisol you can change the focus from quantity to quality. That’s what we want to pioneer. In the long-term, we are looking to achieve double digit growth for both Bisol and Jeio.’

Bisol has no plans to produce a rosé Prosecco, although Gianluca Bisol has previously said that he understands why some producers are keen to go down that route.

‘[At Bisol] we are a traditional house and want to focus on the message of Glera, the steep hills of Valdobiaddane and the idea of particular crus and Rives,’ he said.

See also: 

Prosecco rosé wine moves closer to reality

Top Prosecco: Wines pushing the boundaries – An exclusive report for Premium members

Producers have the option to label their top Prosecco with a village of origin, but are these ‘rive’ wines always a guarantee of quality? Richard Baudains finds out.

Richard Baudains’ top ‘rive’ Prosecco

Since 2009, producers of Prosecco di Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Superiore – the top-drawer DOCG Prosecco from the hills – have had the option of declaring the village of origin of their wines with the phrase ‘Rive di’. Every village which conforms to the basic wine-growing standards of the DOCG zone (there are 43) can claim its sub-denomination.

In the highly democratic division of the area devised by the producers’ consorzio, all rive appear equal, but some might be more equal than others. Are the rive always a guarantee of top quality? And do they really reflect a special sense of place?

The answer to the first question is ‘yes and no’. Producers who use the rive denomination tend to reserve it for their top label, which means that you should be getting a Prosecco made with special care and attention from their best grapes. Some of these rive wines can be spectacularly, eye-openingly good.

The overall quality, however, is not particularly homogeneous: alongside wines with very distinctive personality there are others which are perfectly well made, but little more. As for terroir character, the diversity of growing conditions within the DOCG zone is evident, but it is difficult to pin down corresponding differences between wines at village level.

Article continues below wine reviews.

See the top Prosecco tasting notes and ratings

In search of style

A tentative shot at characterising the most widely exploited and most interesting rive could pick out San Pietro di Barbozza for freshness and refined elegance; Ogliano for its ripe, yellow fruit; Guia for a certain tangy, mineral quality; and Santo Stefano for its firm, fresh zip.

The problem is that there is not a lot of evidence to go on. In a tasting of 58 rive wines I did in October 2017 there were 28 different sub-denominations, most of which were represented by only one or two examples. In some respects the rive are at the cutting edge. The newly recognised extra brut (less than 6g/l of sugar) and brut nature (less than 3g/l) categories are being enthusiastically taken up by producers, and rive wines in particular showcase the trend. In my recent tasting, two-thirds of the wines were in varying shades of brut, while only a small minority were in the traditional extra-dry style.

The drinking window of quality Prosecco is widening and rive wines, which are obliged to declare their vintage, again highlight the trend. I tasted excellent rive from 2015 and even 2014. Rive selections represent a drop in the ocean of the 83 million bottles of Prosecco Superiore produced in 2016 – but it is a still a significant one, with 1.9m bottles. In terms of quality, they are not the only guide to the crème de la crème.

Many top producers, from small independent growers such as Silvano Follador or Cà dei Zago, to leading houses such as Bisol and Ruggeri, do not use village names for their prestige selections. But the good news is that quality producers who do are currently making some of Prosecco’s most interesting wines.

Richard Baudains is the DWWA Regional Chair for Veneto and has written about Italian wine for Decanter since 1989.

UK supermarket Asda has launched a new sparkling wine, which is a blend of Prosecco and Pinot Grigio.

Asda launches ‘ProGrigio’ sparkling wine

Retailing for £5 a bottle, the supermarket claims the wine ‘tastes just like Prosecco but at a lower price point’, according to a statement.

The sparkling wine is made from a blend of Glera – the traditional Prosecco grape – and Pinot Grigio.

Jane Hunt, DWWA joint regional chair for Regional Italy, says ‘I can’t think of anything worse or more pointless.’

‘I imagine, however, it will be a success if only for the low price and what I am sure will be a bland, innocuous concoction.’

This follows a warning earlier this week that a combination of Brexit, inflation and alcohol duty will mean price increases for Prosecco and Champagne, according to the Wine & Spirit Trade Association.

• Brexit: Champagne and Prosecco ban feared

• Brexit means prices will rise, warns trade body

• PM’s Brexit speech keeps trade and drinkers guessing

Ed Betts, Asda wine buying manager, said: ‘We always strive to keep prices as low as possible without compromising on quality and we believe ProGrigio is the ideal affordable sparkling wine alternative.’

‘We want to protect the demand for sparkling wine by offering customers more choice, and by moving slightly away from the Prosecco region we have discovered a great example of quality fizz at an everyday price.’

UK demand for sparkling wine has soared over recent years, drinking almost twice as much compared to five years ago.

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Italy has said it will put forward the Prosecco DOCG growing region for UNESCO world heritage status.

Italy applies for Prosecco UNESCO status

Italy’s National Commission for UNESCO publicly backed the application for the area of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene – the home of Prosecco DOCG wines – to join the world heritage list.

‘It is a recognition that we receive with pride,’ said Innocente Nardi, president of the Consortium of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG.

‘This application adds new value to the beauty of this territory, which for centuries has expressed its potential in many fields; viticulture, first of all, but also wine innovation, art and architecture.’

• Top sparkling wine regions to visit

The Prosecco UNESCO bid has been nearly 10 years in the making; the campaign to nominate Prosecco began in 2008, and in 2010 it was included in the Italian Tentative List.

To qualify for world heritage status, a site must qualify for one of 10 set criteria, and be of ‘outstanding universal value’, according to UNESCO.

Once nominated, advisory bodies evaluate the site in question, and a World Heritage Committee makes the final decision on who makes the list.

UNESCO wine regions

Other Italian UNESCO wine regions include Barolo and Pantelleria, off the coast of southern Italy.

• Seven UNESCO wine regions to visit

With 51 UNESCO sites, Italy has more than any other country, and seven are in Tuscany alone.

Champagne was awarded UNESCO status in 2015, along with Burgundy.

Plans for submitting the 1855 Bordeaux classification to UNESCO were abandoned last year.

More on UNESCO and wine:

Chianti bids to join UNESCO world heritage club

Tuscan wine producers launch their bid...

Georgian winemaking method joins UNESCO heritage list

Georgia's traditional winemaking method of fermenting grapes in earthenware, egg-shaped vessels has been added to the world heritage list of

UNESCO world heritage wine regions to visit: Updated

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A grapevine growing technique handed down through centuries of generations on the island of Pantelleria after it was settled by

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A plan to see the Bordeaux 1855 classification recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage status has been abandoned – at

Sip Italy's best known sparkling wine at the wineries that produced it with this wine tour along the Prosecco Road, where many of the estates open their doors to visitors.

Take the Prosecco wine tour

Just a 30 minute drive from Venice in the region of Veneto lies the home of Prosecco. At its heart is the Prosecco road that runs through the Prosecco DOCG area from the town of Valdobbiadene in the west and Conegliano in the east.

This 20 mile road twists and turns through hilly vineyards, the narrow streets of tiny villages and along the tops of mountains.

• See the full Decanter travel guide to Prosecco and Venice

On the Prosecco road

Dotted all the way along the Prosecco road are the DOCG wineries and vineyards.

Winery and vineyard tours and tastings are available, but they generally have to be booked in advance because wineries are often not open to passers-by.

There are a few companies that you can book private tours with who will take you to a couple of wineries. But, it’s just as simple – and maye even better – to do your own Prosecco wine tour.

Booking a taxi for the whole day is the best way to get the most out of your trip. That way, you can taste the Prosecco without worrying about the drink drive limit, and you can also pick and choose the wineries you want to visit.

Wineries to visit

Carpenè Malvolti

Start your tour at Carpenè Malvolti, one of the older and larger family-run Prosecco houses, in the centre of Conegliano. Two of its Proseccos from the 2014 vintage won awards in the 2015 Decanter Asia Wine Awards.

Via A. Carpene, 1

31015 Conegliano

0039 0438 364611

info@carpene-malvolti.com

www.carpene-malvolti.com/

Bisol

As you head out along the road and the town of Conegliano fades into the distance, stop off at Bisol winery. Ian D’Agata gave their Superiore Brut 2013 90 points in a recent tasting.

Via Follo, 33

31049 Santo Stefano di Valdobbiadene (TV)

0039 0423 900 138

info@bisol.it

bisol.it/

Bortolin

Bortolin currently produce 350,000 bottles of Prosecco a year and was one of the first producers to move to the charmat method in the 1950s, when the owner bought some of the first autoclave and modern bottling machinery.

Via Menegazzi 5

31049 Valdobbiadene (TV)

0039 0423 900 135

info@bortolin.it

www.bortolin.com/

Ruggeri

Established in 1950, Ruggeri moved to its current premises in the early 1990s, where it processes 3,000 tonnes of grapes every harvest. They have a small vineyard of Cartizze and 20 hectares on the nearby Montello, with 12ha planted with Pinot Grigio and Glera.

Via Pra’ Fontana 4

Valdobbiadene (TV)

+39 0423 9092

ruggeri@ruggeri.it

www.ruggeri.it/

Nino Frano

Nino Franco is one of the oldest wineries in Valdobbiadene, founded in 1919, and its owner was one of the first winemakers to export Prosecco. Call or email in advance to book a visit.

Via Garibaldi, 147

31049 Valdobbiadene (TV)

0039 0423 972 051

info@ninofranco.it

www.ninofranco.it/

Villa Sandi

Pre-book a visit to the underground cellar and 17th Century Palladian-style villa.

Via Erizzo 112

Crocetta del Montello Tv

0039 0423 665 033

www.villasandi.it/

Zardetto

Just outside Conegliano, Zardetto has been making Prosecco for almost a hundred years. Prebook a visit at €15 (£11, $16) for a winery tour and wine tasting, or €25 for a winery tour, wine tasting and vineyard visit.

Z.I. Prealpi Trevigiane

31015 Conegliano (TV)

0039 0438 394 969

www.zardettoprosecco.com

See also: Where to stay, eat and shop in Prosecco and Venice, by Fiona Sims

More hotels and restaurants:

Please note: Decanter does not specifically endorse the businesses listed below. Restaurant and hotel listings were based on those featured by Michelin in its regional guide. 

Where to stay

Hotel Villa Soligo

Hotel Villa Soligo is an 18th century Venetian villa, restored with a restaurant that serves traditional Italian dishes and local specialities.

V. Marconi 2 – 31010 – Farra Di Soligo (TV)

0039 0438 842 025

info@hotelvillasoligo.it

www.villasoligo-hotel.com/

Hotel Conta

Overlooking the River Soligo, Hotel Conta is in the heart of Pieve di Soligo’s old town. Bikes can be rented from the reception for a more adventurous tour of the area.

Borgo Stolfi, 25

31053 – Pieve di Soligo (Treviso)

0039 0438 980435

hotelconta@nline.it

www.hotelconta.it/hotel-conta/

Hotel Villa del Poggio

With views of the mountains and vineyards, Hotel Villa del Poggio is a 10 minute drive from Conegliano.

Via Dei pascoli, 8

31020 San Pietro di Feletto (TV)

0039 0438 787154

hotel@cadelpoggio.it

www.cadelpoggio.it/en/hotel-villa-del-poggio/

Where to eat

Locanda da Condo

Stop off at this traditional eatery, a family run restaurant with first class, authentic dishes.

Via Fontana, 134,

31010 Col San Martino TV

www.locandadacondo.it/

Locanda da Marinelli

The chef changes the menu regularly depending on the season, as well as the well thought out wine list. The desserts are worth saving room for.

Via Castella, 5

31010 Col San Martino (Treviso)

0039 0438 987 038

info@locandamarinelli.it

www.locandamarinelli.it/

La Corte

If staying over stray away from the main Prosecco road and dine at La Corte. This one star Michelin has an interesting and extensive wine list and dishes of fish and seafood from the Venetian lagoon. Booking is essential at lunchtime.

Via Roma, 24

31051 Follina (Tv)

0039 0438 971 761

info@lacortefollina.com

www.lacortefollina.com/

•  Read Decanter’s expert tasting notes for Prosecco

Italian producers are optimistic about this year's wine harvest, particularly in Prosecco and the north of Italy, thanks to a warm summer.

This is welcome news after Italian winemakers faced a difficult harvest in 2014, due to high rainfall throughout August last year.

Speaking at the Decanter Simply Italian trade and consumer tasting this week, Andrew Bettini, Export Manager for Piera Martellozzo said ‘We’ve had a good summer, unlike last year which was terrible.’

• Book now: Taste premium wines of the Languedoc

Piera Martellozzo started their Prosecco harvest, as well as for their white wine, last week with just a slight delay due to some rain – ‘but last year we had rain every day, so it’s completely different’ Bettini added.

Whereas this year there were concerns that volumes of Prosecco were running low, due to low volume and higher demand, it appears quantities won’t be a problem for the 2015 vintage, according to Bettini.

‘At least there’s more quantity – everybody ran out of Prosecco [this year].’

At Domus Vini they were also optimistic, having also just started their Glera harvest – which is about 10 to 15 days earlier than last year.

• See also: 12 must-try Proseccos

Daniele D’Angelo, Sales Manager for Vini La Delizia, said the summer was ‘very sunny and also had a small amount of rain… so we are optimistic for the new harvest.’

Whilst Vini La Delizia are happy with how the whole harvest is looking, they are particularly pleased with their white wines.

‘Now it’s warm during the days and a bit cold in the nights, the difference in temperature is very good for the perfumes of the whites,’ said D’Angelo.

‘We are expecting a good harvest, but especially for the whites.’

Fiona Sims plans the ideal way to spend 24 hours in Prosecco, including local markets to visit, Prosecco tasting and local cuisine.

Morning

Feast on delectable homemade wild herb and cheese pie after a morning swim at Villa Barberina. Drop by a local market (there’s one for every day of the week here) and stock up on the local sopressa – an aged salami – before an arranged visit to Nino Franco (www.ninofranco.it) to try its singlevineyard Proseccos. Then work up an appetite for lunch with a steep climb up the hill to San Floriano church to get the lay of the land.

• Read more Decanter travel guides to Italy

Lunch

Take a drive to the other side of town to dine at Trattoria Alla Cima, with its open-fire cooking and melt-in-the-mouth beef tagliata, washed down with the region’s little-known reds. That’s after a plate of casatella: cheese-stuffed tortelli paired with brut Prosecco. For something a little more creative, head to Salis and its all-Prosecco list with its matching, soufflé-like sformatino with wild herbs, followed by nettle-stuffed guinea fowl.

• Decanter travel guide: Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Prosecco & Venice, Italy

Afternoon

Visit Valdobbiadene-based boutique winery Fasol e Menin (www.fasolmenin.it) and sample its Prosecco col fondo wines made by the traditional fermentation-in-the-bottle process, lees and all. Then stop and gaze out over the vertiginous, hallowed Cartizze vineyard, before motoring on higher still to Follina.

Evening and overnight

It’s a 20-minute drive from Cartizze to Follina, where you can lay your head and scoff smart nosh at the wonderfully quirky, family-run Hotel Villa Abbazia. This boasts a full-on tearoom, and a Michelin one-star restaurant, complete with Prosecco-heavy wine list. Leave enough time to visit the famous cloistered Cistercian abbey opposite.

Fiona Sims shares her address book of top hotels, restaurants and shops in Prosecco and Venice.

Hotels

Villa Barberina

This handsome 18th-century villa in the heart of Valdobbiadene is owned by well-regarded

Prosecco producer Nino Franco. It offers five huge, palazzo-style bedrooms, plus a swimming pool set among the vines. Don’t skip the splendid breakfasts. www.villabarberina.it

Hotel Villa Abbazzia

It’s very much a family affair at this plush Relais & Châteaux inn in Follina. It acts as a hub for locals, who hang out in the bar at the front, and a draw for food and wine lovers, who enjoy the Michelin starred finery in the courtyard restaurant. www.hotelabbazia.it

Belmond Hotel Cipriani

A world apart from other luxury hotels, the Cipriani is a five-minute boat ride from St Mark’s Square on Giudecca Island. Yes, it’s a celebrity haunt (headed by George Clooney), but the staff will treat you like family whoever you are. Chef Davide Bisetto cooks in its two Michelin-starred restaurant Oro (top image.) www.belmond.com

• Read more Decanter travel guides to Italy

Hotel Palazzo Abadessa

The 15-room Venetian palazzo may be a fair hike from Venice’s main attractions but it offers frescoed ceilings, polished antiques and a lush garden in the quiet Cannaregio area of the city, where you can hang out (and eat) with the locals.www.abadessa.com

• Decanter travel guide: Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Prosecco & Venice, Italy

Restaurants

Trattoria Alla Cima

Set in the DOCG Prosecco hills near Valdobbiadene with views out to the sea, this local favourite was opened by Antonio Rebuli in 1969. Now his son Isidoro is at the helm, overseeing the impressive wood-fired grill that takes centre stage. www.trattoriacima.it

Salis

A slick affair in the heart of the Cartizze vineyard. It boasts a wine shop and swimming pool, in addition to an innovative restaurant that offers a strong listing of DOCG Prosecco, complete with pictures of winemakers and, helpfully, full winery addresses and opening times. www.salisristorante.it

Osteria Borgoluce

It’s best to approach this buzzy eatery after a 45-minute walk up through Borgoluce’s 600-hectare Susegana estate chestnut forest, which winds up from its farmhouse B&B. Feast on steamed fat white asparagus (when in season), followed by Veneto Cabernet braised buffalo. www.borgoluce.it

Venissa

Venice proper seems a world away from the convent-like calm of the Bisol-owned Venissa wine resort on surprisingly rural Mazzorbo island, the Vaporetto stop before the much-visited, multi-coloured Burano. The (pricey) wine made from grapes grown here is smart, sure, but the Michelin-starred food is the real winner – cooked by four head chefs. www.venissa.it

Shops

Bar Alpina

A winemaker hangout, and a great place to slake your thirst with Prosecco after climbing through the vineyards to the San Floriano church above. Choose bottles to take away from its enoteca or eat in, feasting on polpette and prosciutto. www.baralpino.it

Salumi de Stefani

It’s sausage heaven at this Guia-based salumeria that supplies Valdobbiadene and beyond. Highlights include the mild ossocollo, the garlic-infused salado trevisan and soft, intense sopressa trevigiana. www.salumidestefani.it

Perenzin Latteria

There is cheese galore to enjoy from the region, among them bastardo, which mixes milk from sheep, goat and cow; aromatic inbriago, which matures in Prosecco grape pomace; and fresh, delicate castatella trevigiana, available at this San Pietro di Feletto cheese shop. www.perenzin.com

Speculation that sparkling wine drinkers could be deprived of their Prosecco in the next few months has been dampened by the trade, but some merchants have reported higher prices.

There has been concern for several months that a difficult 2014 vintage in much of northern Italy, due to prolonged bouts of heavy rain and cold weather, might curtail supplies of Prosecco.

In January this year, Italy 24 reported that the head of the Prosecco DOC council, Stefano Zanette, had authorised producers to use reserve stocks to help relieve any pressure.

Part of the potential problem also lies in the rising global demand for Italy’s premier sparkling wine. Italy’s wine observatory said last year that global Prosecco sales beat those of Champagne in 2013; 307m bottles to 304m.

Andy Shaw, buying director at Bibendum PLB, which supplies wine to many restaurants and retailers across the UK, said he was relatively relaxed about the amount of Prosecco available, albeit prices have risen.

‘Exact confirmation of whether there will be enough volume to satisfy demand is impossible to say, but we have sufficient volumes to satisfy our current customer requirements [and] indeed we are being offered more Prosecco volumes on a daily basis,’ he said.

‘The Prosecco supply was under pressure if sales of Prosecco continued increasing at the same rate as in 2014 whilst servicing booming markets in mainland Europe, the USA and the UK,’ he added. ‘What has happened as a result is that pricing has increased as the volumes have become more sought after globally, which has led to a softening of demand.’

Regulatory changes mean there will be more volumes on the market from the 2015 vintage, he said.

Domenico Zonin, chief executive of Italian Prosecco and general wine producer Zonin, was quoted by the Huffington Post as saying he didn’t expect significant problems with shortages.

While uncertainty may continue to linger around supplies of Prosecco DOC, producers in the higher grade DOCG areas were less affected by last year’s rain soaked harvest. Renata Toninato, of the trade body for Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore, told Decanter.com, ‘the 2014 harvest in the area of was standard in terms of quantity’.

See also:

• Prosecco producers angered by ‘illegal’ serving in UK bars

Written by Chris Mercer

Italy's Prosecco winemakers have complained that UK pubs and bars are damaging their image by falsely labelling sparkling wine that is served on tap.

The winemakers’ consortium for Prosecco DOC and DOCG appellations in northern Italy accused bars in the UK of breaking European Union rules. It did not name specific venues.

Its concern follows the rise of Prosecco served on draught at several UK bars, rather than out of bottles. The UK is a key export market for Prosecco producers and competition with both some Champagne brands and English sparkling wine is increasingly fierce.

Since 2009, only winemakers in designated areas of northeast Italy, and working to specific rules, can label their sparkling wines as Prosecco. But this is still being ignored by some in the UK, said the Consorzio Tutela del Vino Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco.

‘This is illegal and it represents counterfeiting for both the Italian producer and British consumers,’ said the consortium.

One UK bar group that specialises in supplying Italian sparkling wine on tap in the UK, Frizzenti, strongly denied wrongdoing and said it ‘fully supports’ EU rules.

Prosecco consortium figures show that the UK is the third most important export market for sparkling DOCG wine from Italy. The UK imports around 5m bottles annually, with an ex-cellar value of 22.4m euros.

Many UK retailers have reported spikes in consumer demand for Prosecco in the past couple of years. Marks & Spencer and the Co-operative Group were among those reporting a surge in Prosecco demand over the recent Christmas period, while discounter Lidl told Decanter.com that its Prosecco volume sales tripled in December.

The picture was more mixed for some retailers. London-based The Sampler saw Prosecco sales increase by 3% over the Christmas period, but Champagne sales rose by 10%, owner Jamie Hutchinson told Decanter.com.

The chart below, based on a survey of more than 1,000 British consumers by market research group Mintel, suggests that Prosecco is now bought as commonly as Champagne in the UK, albeit Prosecco is cheaper.

The study, which covered buying habits in the first half of 2014 and was published last October, found that only 29% of those surveyed thought Champagne was worth the extra money.

Written by Chris Mercer

Sparkling wine producer Igristy Vina has joined a growing number of Russian drinks firms buying foreign wine labels, after closing a deal for Italy’s Contarini.

Igristy Vina has agreed to pay €8m for Prosecco DOCG producer Contarini, and will also pay off the Italian sparkling wine producer’s debts, estimated at €20m.

The deal is the latest example of recent investment in wine by Russian drinks firms.

Igristy Vina rival Abrau Durso has said it will spend €10m to up its domestic sparkling wine production capacity over the next few years, while vodka maker Russian Standard has taken a majority stake in Italy’s Gancia and is also partnering Concha y Toro in Russia.

Vasily Dragan, chairman of Igristy Vina, said the Contarini acquisition enables the firm to significantly increase its sparkling wine range and produce its own brands – such as Masters’ Heritage and LEV Golitsyn – at Contarini’s facilities.

Contarini is the one of the largest Prosecco producers, with annual volumes of 20m bottles. Around 500,000 bottles are exported to Russia annually and Igristy Vina wants this figure to top the 1m barrier this year.

Alongside Prosecco DOCG, Contarini also makes Prosecco DOC and Prosecco Frizzante DOC, as well as some still wines, including Colli di Congeliano DOCG Rosso.

Contarini’s wines are pitched at around the RUB400 to RUB550 level (US$11.4 to $15.7) at retailers in Russia.

While the domestic market remains a strong focus for many Russian wine producers, some are keen to increase their exports.

But, it will take time. Abrau-Durso chairman Pavel Titov said he wants exports to reach 5% of group sales in the short-to-medium-term, without putting naming a date.

Abrau-Durso produced 25m bottles of sparkling wine in 2013, up 25% on 2012. Its investment plan would see production rise to 34m bottles annually.

Written by Eugene Gerden

Magnums of Prosecco and Champagne surged in popularity over Christmas, according to UK supermarket Sainsbury's, with several retailers including Majestic and Tesco reporting higher festive wine sales versus 2012.

Early signs suggest UK wine drinkers banished concerns about the country’s fragile economy to buy more bottles over the Christmas period than they did a year before.

Prosecco, long touted as a rising star in the sparkling wine category, stood out as a top performer. Sainsbury’s saw Prosecco sales rise by 41% in volume terms between the 18 and 31 December, versus the same period of 2012, a spokesperson for the UK’s second largest supermarket told decanter.com.

Magnums of Sainsbury’s own-brand Taste the Difference Prosecco showed sales up by 291%, albeit this is off a relatively low base.

‘Between Christmas and New Year, sparkling wine sales were up considerably versus the same period last year, with Prosecco accounting for much of the growth,’ a spokesperson for Tesco said. ‘Sales of our own label Plaza Prosecco were up nearly 200% and [Tesco] finest Prosecco sales trebled.’

Tesco also sold ‘considerably more’ ready-mixed Bucks Fizz. Most growth in Tesco’s wine sales over the Christmas period has come from ‘existing shoppers increasing spend’, the spokesperson added.

Prosecco may have stolen the headlines, but Champagne, Bordeaux, English sparkling wine and some New World wines also enjoyed a good festive period at various retailers.

‘Champagne has been selling very well at Grand Marque level,’ Majestic Wine’s chief executive, Steve Lewis, told decanter.com. ‘It’s at the entry-level that consumers are switching to other sparkling wines.’

Majestic said today (8 January) that net sales for the 10 weeks to 6 January rose by 5.9%, and by 2.8% if sales from new stores are excluded. ‘We’re very pleased,’ said Lewis.

Alongside Prosecco and Champagne, he highlighted other strong performers as South African wine at the £5.99 price-point and Argentinian Malbec, as well as sparkling wines from England and New Zealand.

A revamp of the retailer’s fine wine business continued to pay off over Christmas, Lewis said. ‘We lost the plot a bit in fine wine,’ he said, commenting on the decision to refocus on central London consumers and on classics, such as Bordeaux, Burgundy, Barolo and Brunello, with some New World.

‘We’ve just had a good Christmas for Bordeaux, focused on the £18 to £25-a-bottle price point. There’s quite a lot of mature wine out there that negociants have got.’

At London retailer The Sampler, co-owner Jamie Hutchinson said of Christmas, ‘after a few years of poor sales, mid-range Bordeaux, from £15 to £60, did very well, as did grower Champagne’. Overall, The Sampler saw like-for-like sales rise by around 6% over the Christmas period, although Hutchinson said demand was ‘poor’ between Christmas and New Year.

UK wine retailer Majestic expects strong sales momentum for Prosecco to continue, after drinkers' thirst for the Italian sparkling wine proved a highlight of its financial half-year.

Prosecco sales at Majestic rose by 39% in volume terms during the six months to the end of September, versus the same period of the previous year.

A spokesperson for Majestic told decanter.com that it sold 625,000 bottles of Prosecco over the half-year, as drinkers continued to embrace its more informal image – and lower price tag – versus Champagne.

‘It is not just for celebrating, it is a social drink for enjoying on a Friday and Saturday night, and we expect this trend to continue,’ the spokesperson said.

Sparkling wine has been a rare bright spot in an otherwise tough UK wine market in 2013. In September, the country’s Wine & Spirit Trade Association said year-on-year sales of sparkling were up by 10% by volume, versus a total wine sector in slight decline.

However, it also said Champagne volumes had dropped, showing that non-Champagne sparkling has led growth.

At Majestic, total net sales for its half-year increased by 3.3% to £130.2m, driven by a warm summer, new store openings and also a 15.6% increase in wines priced at £20-a-bottle and above.

Like-for-like sales, excluding the contribution of new stores, dipped by 0.4% as the retailer faced high comparative sales from the Queen’s Jubilee a year earlier.

Net profits rose by 8% to £7.25m, boosted by lower administrative costs and slightly lower tax charges.

Although the 2012 vintage Bordeaux en primeur campaign ‘was similar in quality and scale to 2011’, Majestic said its specialist business in this area, Lay & Wheeler, increased profits before interest and tax by nearly 14% on the same period of last year, to £575,000.

In fine wine more generally, Majestic said that it cut the range of wines stocked in order to focus on only the best-known names across the Old and New Worlds.

Written by Chris Mercer

Italian authorities have employed a local oenologist to combat the rising problem of 'fake' Prosecco being sold in the Veneto region.

Winemaker Andrea Battistella was asked in June this year by the agricultural ministry to investigate, and report venues to the authorities who are selling imitation Prosecco from carafe or on draft.

Roberto Cremonese, export manger for producer Bisol in the Treviso region told decanter.com that at least 30% of DOC Prosecco sales were now estimated to be based on illegal wines.

‘Much of the Prosecco found in bars in the region is produced artificially with the addition of C02 and sold on draft from beer kegs. The fault lies with the distributors, who often willingly market undrinkable wines.’

‘It is a major concern for us, as it can really damage Prosecco’s image,’ he added.

According to Dario Poddana of wine importer Les Caves De Pyrene, the changes to the Prosecco appellation framework in 2009 have exasperated the problem of counterfeit wines being sold.

‘After the removal of the Prosecco IGT designation, growers under the new DOC rules had to reduce their yields to an output of 180 hectolitres per hectare from the previous 250,’ Poddana said.

‘Some growers have therefore found it economically difficult adjusting to these more stringent rules and resorted to importing grapes from outside the region, selling counterfeit wines under the Prosecco DOC label,’ he added.

However, as the responsibility falls on the venues to refrain from selling fake Prosecco, they are punished rather than the producer directly.

If found guilty of selling non-Prosecco under the DOC name, sellers can be punished with fines of up to €20,000 (£17,000) each.

Prosecco emerged as the wine favourite among shoppers in the UK at Christmas, with soaring sales of the Italian sparkler reported by Majestic, Waitrose and Tesco.

Prosecco: ‘soaring sales’

Tesco said sales of Prosecco in 2012 were likely to be double those in 2011, while Waitrose wine buying manager Ken Mackay reported it as ‘the biggest seller by far’ in a 23% sales surge for sparkling wine over the Christmas period.

Majestic chief executive Steve Lewis told Decanter.com that sales of Prosecco had soared by 55% by value in the last seven weeks of 2012, while Champagne sales were flat and overall sparkling wine sales rose 22%.

Majestic reported overall sales up 5.1% over the same period, with like-for-like sales rising 1.1% – broadly in line with the company’s performance over the rest of the year to date.

Lewis described the Christmas trading period as ‘challenging’, as many consumers delayed their shopping until the last minute – but added that this simplified the planning of stock and staffing levels.

Online sales, which rose 15% to account for 10% of Majestic’s turnover, were now ‘absolutely critical’, he said: ‘Without online clearly we wouldn’t be performing as well as we are.’

Volumes of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc continued to be ‘extraordinary’, Lewis added, with Marisco-owned brand The Ned set to sell more than 1m bottles in this financial year.

Other big sellers included Argentinian Malbec priced at £6-12 a bottle, and French regions including the Loire, Rhone, Beaujolais and Languedoc, which Lewis attributed to ‘younger consumers discovering France for the first time’.

Meanwhile, Waitrose had its strongest fortnight’s trading ever in the last two weeks of the year, with English sparkling wine seeing an 80% sales spike, said Mackay.

However, supermarket rival Morrisons had a disappointing Christmas – like-for-like sales fell 2.5% in the six weeks to 30 December – but said it had sold 407,000 litres of Champagne, 18.5m litres of wine and 734,000 bottles of brandy in the two months to Christmas Eve.

Tesco will announce detailed Christmas trading figures this week.

Written by Richard Woodard

The continuing success of Prosecco is good for Champagne, Lanson managing director Paul Beavis has said.

Prosecco: ‘a good job’

Prosecco’s sales were up by nearly 50% in 2011, the Champagne Category Report for 2011, launched by Lanson International last week, found.

Such success was good for all sparkling wines, Paul Beavis, managing director of Lanson International, told Decanter.com. ‘I think it proves its point as an introducer to the sparkling category. Prosecco’s done a good job in terms of value.’

The report, which used research from analysts Neilson and CGA Strategy, comes shortly after the news that Champagne’s 2011 exports were up by 5.1%, most of which increase came from countries like the US, China, Russia, and India, where sales were up a massive 58%, from 0.18m in 2010 to 0.29m in 2011.

The UK, Champagne’s largest export market, experienced a decline in volume of 2.7% to 34.5m bottles in 2011.

The second biggest export market is the US, which saw shipments of Champagne rise by 14% in 2011 to 19.4 million bottles.

However, despite this decline, Champagne has increased in value by 4.3%, due in part to last summer’s royal wedding driving up sales. The hope is that the Diamond Jubilee and the London Olympics will mean a similar increase.

In other sparkling categories, while Cava sales in 2011 stayed about the same, Prosecco soared to nearly £90m, a 47.9% growth rate.

Although Champagne sales in retail outlets like high street chains and supermarkets grew only minutely, the on-trade showed most growth.

Despite the closure of 2.6% of Britain’s on-trade outlets, most notably nightclubs and hotels, and a 14% decrease in volume, Champagne sales in this sector grew by 8% to £327m.

Lanson also announced the results of consumer research which found Champagne is now being purchased more frequently than just for special occasions, and that 69% of those surveyed admitted that brand combined with price deal was the most important factor in their buying choices.

On the state of the market in the UK, Beavis said, ‘Champagne has been remarkably resilient through the global downturn…the thirst for Champagne will always be there.’

Written by Christina Pickard

Looking at the gentle hills of the DOCG Valdobbiadene district, not far from Venice, it is remarkable how the sinuous lines of vineyards mark the boundary between earth and sky. This is a true terroir, sheltered by the Dolomites to the north and protected by the mild climate of the Adriatic sea to the south. When the sun shines at harvest time the vineyards shimmer like gold, with brilliant purity, and the region yields up its precious cargo of grapes. The great winemaking traditions of the area do the rest.

This is the home of Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG, the sparkling wine whose distinctive aromatic qualities and fine perlage have won it admirers all over the world.

This is also where the Valdo Spumanti company is based. For 80 years Valdo has been involved in spreading the news about Prosecco in Italy and abroad in a strategy followed with dedication and passion which combines work in the vineyard, management in the cellars and the creation of a range of unique sparkling wines.

Two wines stand out: Marca Oro is Valdo’s traditional brand, as poular as ever, and Oro Puro is the new Prosecco Superiore DOCG, which affirms its high quality with a careful selection of grapes to be used at harvest time chosen exclusively by hand.

This is a wine for special occasions or to be used as a gift. “The name itself is bestowed in homage to our territory, where we have ever closer ties,” explains Paolo Olivieri, Export Manager of Valdo Spumanti.

Oro Puro is made from grapes picked in the best sites of the Valdobbiadene DOCG area. Straw yellow in colour with golden reflections, its crystalline character benefits from a fine and long lasting perlage. The bouquet has pronounced aromas of fruit, apples and pears, and flowers, with a finish containing tropical fruit, bananas and pineapple. The palate is delicate and balanced with excellent length of both aromas and taste. With the sinuous lines of its dark, satin-finish bottle and an elegant label, Oro Puro is the ideal product for special occasions, to be served at 6-7°C in fine glassware. At its best with fish-based dishes, this is a real jewel of the Valdobbiadene territory.

Attention to quality and love for the territory are rewarded by awards both in Italy and abroad. Valdo Spumanti continued its expansion in 2011, performing better and better on export markets.

For more information visit: valdo.com

Written by Decanter.com

The Prosecco region estimates it will grow to almost five times its current size by 2035.

The Italian sparkling wine producing region forecasts production volumes will reach one billion bottles within the next 25 years, according to figures revealed at Hong Kong’s Wine Future conference. The region currently produces 220m bottles each year.

Gianluca Bisol, managing director of Bisol, estimates the Prosecco-producing regions of Veneto and Friuli will need to invest around €1.8bn (£1.5bn) to finance this expansion.

Bisol told Decanter.com, ‘Growth will be possible because the consumer will shun general sparkling wines for higher quality products.’ Growth has been fuelled by the US, which has quadrupled its consumption of Prosecco in the past decade to 2.3m bottles in 2010.

Production is set to double within the next two years claims Bisol. ‘There are enough vines in the ground for 400m bottles and they will come on stream in 2013,’ he added.

Written by Rebecca Gibb

The current Prosecco di Conegliano e Valdobbiadine DOC zone will become Prosecco DOCG from 1 August.

As reported on decanter.com in May, the name of the new DOCG will be Conegliano-Valdobbiadene and the sparkling wines will have the words ‘DOCG Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore’ on the label.

In a statement, the Consorzio per la Tutela del Prosecco di Conegliano-Valdobbiadene said, ‘From 1st August 2009 all Prosecco will be protected both within and outside Europe.

‘Producers making Prosecco from outside the DOCG and DOC region will have to use the new grape name Glera (an ancestor of the Prosecco grape) on their labels instead of Prosecco.’

Consorzio president Franco Adami said, ‘In 1969, when we obtained the DOC, [Prosecco] was grown exclusively in the 15 communes lying between the small towns of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene.

‘However in the last few decades…its cultivation has gradually spread. Given this situation, we had to take action to protect the name Prosecco.’