Women prefer bubbles

No, no, no Marilyn....I totally disagree!!
`Personally I think it'd be tacky to wear a diamond before I'm forty`!!...I'm more a Holly Golithly kind of woman... 

And in the few years left before getting to the `big date`, when I feel girlish or a bit foolish, when I am celebrating something or just want to treat myself, my best friend are bubbles.

Fine bubbles delicately tickling my throat.....                                                                              
                                                                                                  
....with that elegance that uplifts my cheap sushi on a long tasting day....

















...with that sparkle that matches my music on a Friday evening at home....

...and that backbone of acidity that cleanse my palate after a salami plate (when I'm not on a diet!)....















If I only I could say as Madame Lilly Bollinger used to....

`I drink champagne when I'm happy and when I'm sad. Sometimes I drink it when I'm alone. When I have company I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I'm not hungry and drink it when I am. Otherwise I never touch it - unless I'm thirsty. `

Salute!

Fine bubbles, made in Italy

In the eternal competition of sparkling wines vs Champagne,  unfortunately, Franciacorta doesn’t really get any special place on the podium, especially in the UK trade.

Probably due to an historical lack of popularity as well as more expensive prices compared to the more famous Cavas and Proseccos, sparkling Franciacortas have only a niche market in Italy and are often very difficult to sell outside their country. 

Most people don’t know the quality of these wines and can’t understand the reason of their quite important prices.

I believe that Franciacorta can be described as the closest cousin of Champagne. And although I think probably most Franciacorta producers, would not like this definition, no one can deny that these wines are the most similar in grape varieties, style, elegance and (most relevant factor in terms of costs) production technique (traditional method with a second fermentation in bottle and long ageing on lees). 

In 1995, the law clarified the distinctions in wine production in the area, by classifying the sparkling wines as DOCG and the still ones under the DOC Terre di Franciacorta.

The area of production, in the province of Brescia, Northern Italy, is characterized by a soil rich in minerals.  The near Iseo lake has quite a strong relevance on the mesoclimate, allowing warm days and cool nights that enhance the development of a good acidity.

The wines can be extremely elegant with complexity of flavours, good structure and fine bubbles. But,as Jancis Robinson states on her Oxford Companion of Wine, 'the production has often been influenced by a variation of quality and only few producers really deserve a mention'.

No doubts one of these is Berlucchi a bit of a pioneer since the '60s, but at the top of my very personal list at the moment is certainly Bellavista. Their Grand Cuvée is a splendid example of fine sparkling wine, totally comparable to a non vintage Champagne.

Top of their production is the Vittorio Moretti named after the founder and owner of the company. A wine of silky texture with persistent very fine bubbles and a backbone of acidity perfectly balanced by its elegant structure.

 
Don't get too shocked by what I'm about to say, but best food match I can suggest is with mortadella or lardo. 
The full fatness of this charcuterie will be completely cleared by the gentle and fine bubbles of this stylish but underrated wine
(and trust me when I say that this match has been personally tested several times!!!)

Salute!

Are you drinking Glera or Prosecco?!

Has anyone ever heard of Glera? Certainly not that many, at least not before 2009. This is the year when names and appellations have slightly changed in Prosecco.

To legally protect this wine from the venturous productions coming from countries such as China or South America, and to defend its origins, the name of the grape, since then commonly referred as Prosecco, has been changed to Glera.

Prosecco is actually a clone of Glera. And Glera is a really ancient grape variety grown mainly in the area around Trieste in Friuli Venezia Giulia and more specifically around a little town called Prosecco and later spread in Veneto. I know that now the story could sound confusing, but it's not.

The good thing is that the name of the wine has not changed and of course neither its taste. But now when you will be buying a bottle of Prosecco you will be sure that it will be coming from Italy. Two top appellations (DOCG) have also been created: Prosecco di Conegliano Valdobbiadene and Colli Asolani produced in Veneto in the heart of Prosecco evolution and development, and one minor (DOC) in an area in between Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia, where the grape has its origins. But on the back of the label as it happens for a lot of Italian wines, you could find Glera grape specified.

Once said that and leaving the boring legal part on a side, either if you call it Prosecco or Glera what you will have a light, fruity and refreshing aperitif. And please do not even try to compare it to Champagne. This is a totally different thing. Better or not it depends mainly on taste, but totally different.

Champagne is champagne. It is made from 3 grapes: Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay. It is produced in Champagne region only. And the second fermentation takes place in the bottle. Finally a long ageing period on the lees gives the wine a deep complexity and buttery and yeasty notes.

Prosecco is Prosecco. It is made from Glera. It is produced in North of Italy. The second fermentation happens following the Charmat method in bulk tanks to finally being bottled under pressure. The resulting wine is fruity, fresh and aromatic.
The only common thing is the presence of bubbles, and even the bubbles are different!!