Prosecco has catapulted Italian sparkling wines and its popularity has no bounds, but there’s more to Italian fizzy wines than the foamy bubble.
From the birthplace of Italy’s first traditionally made sparkling wine in Alta Langa to bottle-fermented sparkling wines in Franciacorta and Trento to southern Sicilia and Sardegna, a wide plethora of refreshing and cheerful Italian bubbles offer the ready charms of Prosecco and the depth of a more complicated Champagne.
At the upcoming Vino Condiviso Bollicine on December 4, Hong Kong will put on its biggest and most extensive Italian sparkling wine tasting extravaganza featuring over 65 Italian to highlight breadth and diversity of Italian fizz.
Here we have highlighted four main types of under discovered Italian sparkling wines from north to south. The vintage specific piedmontese sparkling wines from Alta Langa DOCG and Italy’s most ambitious competitor to Champagne in Franciacorta would stump perhaps most ardent Champagne lovers in blind tasting.
Moving south, Campania’s DUBL sparkling wines made from indigenous grapes using Champanoise methods are wines that deserve serious attention. Brut from Sicily and Sardegna also offer refreshing options that exalt virtues of local grapes.
Scroll through the pages to discover all the gems.
