Friday, December 18, 2015

Naked Vine One-Hitter: Bisol’s “Crede” Floats Like a Butterfly

Homestretch of 2015! The year that was supposed to bring us Marty McFly’s vision of the Chicago Cubs victorious in the World Series turned out to be both exciting and challenging on any number of levels, and 2016 looks in all indications to be a “may you live in interesting times” kind of year. Still, we move forward with an eye to celebrating as best we can when we can.

With our celebrations go wine, and end-of-year celebrations scream for bubbly, of course. The all-around sparkling wine champ around Vine HQ these days, whether it’s being cracked on its own, alongside a light dinner, or next to a well-crafted post-merriment brunch, is Prosecco. Most Prosecco, as I pointed out recently, are usually under $15, are a bit fruity, hintingly sweet, and food-friendly.

Like most wine styles, though, there are a few Prosecco which are a little pricier. I haven’t bumped into too many of them, so when the Wine Fairy dropped off a bottle of Bisol “Crede” Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG – a $25 bottle – on the ol’ doorstep, I got my patented sideways grin of anticipation.

Before we get into the wine itself, let’s make some sense of that good long moniker. “Bisol,” of course, is the winery. The Bisol family has been producing grapes in the Prosecco region of the Veneto in some form or fashion since 1542.

If we peek back at the classifications of Italian wine that we explored not long ago, a wine labeled “Prosecco” would be at the “DOC” or “DOP” level of classification. “Valdobbiadene” is a specific area within the Prosecco region known for producing the higher-quality versions of the wine, so it gets tagged with “DOCG.” “Prosecco Superiore” does not indicate a difference in aging, as certain other similar sounding tags like “Chianti Riserva” do. Instead, it just translates as, “Hey! This is the gooood stuff.”

As for “Crede,” this apparently is a type of the Veneto soil in which the grapes for Prosecco thrive. In this case, the grapes are Glera (formerly called Prosecco, if you remember), Pinot Bianco, and Verdiso. This should not be confused with this guy, named after the Greek sun god:

No. Not him. But the Bisol gets a thumbs up.
This Crede is a darned nice sparkling wine. Many Prosecco tend to be a little sharp in both their fruit flavors and their acidity, which make them a good pairing for food, since those edges get rounded off. No need with Crede. The perlage (WineSpeak for “description of bubbles”) is creamy and gentle – much more reminiscent of a Champagne than an Italian sparkler. 

There’s a pretty nose of apple and apple blossoms that moves smoothly into a crisp palate of green apples and pears. Nicely balanced, the flavors are quite full and rich. The finish is lasting and creamy, with a gentle smoothness that’s somewhat unique to my experience. We had a couple of glasses alongside a pumpkin bisque with shrimp for dinner and the rest with Chinese takeout a day later, and it paired nicely with both.

All in all, I thought it was a winner. When I’m looking for sparklers that are of slightly higher quality than everyday, but aren’t quite in the premium category, I tend to lean towards some American bottles like Mumm Napa or Schramsberg. The Bisol will certainly have me peeking around the Italian aisle, looking for some interesting drink from Valdobbiadene. If you’re looking for something nice for a holiday meal or celebration, this would certainly be a solid option.


(Thanks to Laura at Colangelo for the bubbly.)

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