A day to celebrate our favourite fizz… why Prosecco is the bubbly Italian we all love

Prosecco has conquered the world

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Prosecco has conquered the world

Gary Law Email

August 05 2022 07:00 AM

Strange but true: there is a village in Italy called Prosecco but the area best known for producing the famous sparkling wine isn’t anywhere nearby – it’s a two-hour car journey away. There also used to be a grape called Prosecco but there isn’t any more – it’s now called Glera after the Italian authorities changed the name. And although Prosecco is renowned for its bubbles, not all of it is sparkling – Tranquilo Prosecco has no fizz whatsoever.

It's a wine whose story is full of surprising contradictions, yet that hasn’t prevented Prosecco from conquering the world. Last year 627 million bottles were despatched across the globe from the small region in northern Italy where it can only be produced. And wine drinkers in the UK are its biggest fans, snapping up almost a quarter of all the Prosecco sent abroad in 2021.

So I imagine there’ll be plenty of local enthusiasm for next Saturday’s International Prosecco Day, an occasion created to celebrate this most versatile of wines which takes place every August. There isn’t any fanfare or street carnival to mark the day; it’s really just an excuse to enjoy a glass or two of Prosecco, but hey, who needs an excuse?

One of the reasons why we love this clean, crisp aromatic wine, with its notes of apple, pear and white peaches, is its relatively low price of around £8-£12. Prosecco differs from its far more expensive rival Champagne in that it’s fermented in stainless steel tanks, a cheaper and less time-consuming process than the French method of fermenting the wine in its bottle. Most Prosecco is produced in the hills around Treviso, north of Venice, with some of the best bottles coming from the area surrounding the nearby town of Valdobbiadene. The village of Prosecco I mentioned at the beginning is also a producer, but it’s in a small-scale region on the far side of the Adriatic near the city of Trieste.

There are a few things worth noting if you’re thinking of picking up a bottle or two to mark International Prosecco Day. One consideration is sparkle value: if you like full-on fizz go for Spumante; if you want it slightly less exuberant go for Frizzante; and if you want no bubbles at all there’s always Tranquilo – if you can find it.

Then there are levels of sweetness. Confusingly, ‘dry’ Prosecco is one of the sweetest versions you can get, with up to 32g of sugar in every litre of wine, or about a third of the sugar you’d find in Coca-Cola Original. ‘Extra dry’ is slightly less sweet, and ‘brut’ is the least sweet. You can occasionally find ‘brut nature’ and ‘extra brut’ which signify even less sugar, but ‘brut’ will usually fit the bill.

And finally, there’s the area of origin to consider. Prosecco DOC is the basic description, while Valdobbiadene Superiore DOCG is a step up. Valdobbiadene Rive DOCG comes from one of 43 hilly areas that produce exceptional grapes, but bottles can be hard to find. And Valdobbiadene Superiore di Cartizze DOCG, a much sought-after Prosecco from a small 107-hectare area, is even harder to track down.

If you’re thinking of marking International Prosecco Day on August 13, try a few glasses alongside a traditional Italian antipasto platter of cured meats, cheeses, olives and almonds, or maybe serve it with some spicy Asian food. Then again, you could just mix up a classic Italian Aperol Spritz, or a Bellini with peach puree, or maybe a Hugo with elderflower cordial and mint.

Lidl, which has a range of good value Proseccos on offer, suggests making a Zesty Apple Sangria by mixing 250ml of its Valdobbiadene Extra Dry Prosecco Superiore (£7.99) with a full bottle of Pinot Grigio Garda (£6.49, also from Lidl) in a pitcher filled with thinly sliced red and green apple. Chill the whole lot for a couple of hours and serve with a garnish of grapes you’ve frozen beforehand.

Alternatively, you could try making their rather appealing Orange and Lemon Frosé, which involves pouring a bottle of Prosecco Spumante Rosé Millesima (£7.99) into a baking tray and freezing overnight, blitzing two peeled oranges and two lemons with four teaspoons of sugar in a blender, then adding the frozen Prosecco and blitzing some more until it’s like a slushie. Pour the icy mix into chilled glasses, add a shot of Bitterol Spritz (£4.99 from Lidl) to each and garnish with orange and lemon peel.

And if International Prosecco Day whets your appetite for more of our favourite Italian sparkler, you might want to make a date for the Festival of Prosecco being held in Belfast’s Merchant Hotel next month. Now in its sixth year, this month-long festival features an array of special events and drink offers throughout September. Highlights include a four-course gourmet dinner with Prosecco pairings, hosted by wine expert Davide Roncada, a ‘Sip and Learn’ Prosecco masterclass in the rooftop garden, fashion shows with a glass of fizz, Prosecco afternoon teas, tasting flights, and, of course, plenty of cocktails.

Expect to hear the sound of corks popping everywhere over the next few weeks.

Lidl’s Prosecco range and cocktail ideas available at www.lidl-ni.co.uk. Details of the Merchant Hotel events at www.themerchanthotel.com/whats-on

A day to celebrate our favourite fizz… why Prosecco is the bubbly Italian we all love

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