Naked Vine One-Hitter: Dinner with the Father of Prosecco

I love a wine with a good story.

As you all know, I’m a big fan of bubbles. But I’ve never quite figured out what to do with Prosecco.

Bust of Antonio Carpene outside the Istituto Coneglio

I can usually find it for about the same price as other decent, entry-level sparkling wines like Cava or some of the less-expensive American producers, like Gruet or Domaine St. Michelle. When I’m snagging a bottle to go with a meal, I rarely gravitate towards Prosecco on my own, but I’ll certainly try one if it shows up at the door.

When a bottle of Carpenè Malvolti 1868 Prosecco di Conegliano-Valdobbiadene DOCG Extra Dry appeared, I was quite pleased. I’d given good marks to the Bisol “Crede” Prosecco a couple of months ago, and I hoped that this one would be of similar quality. As I pointed out when I wrote about the Crede, if you see the regional classification of “Valdobbiadene DOCG” on the side of a bottle of Prosecco, you’re probably looking at a pretty decent bottle.

What I didn’t realize when I opened the package was that I was holding an interesting little piece of history. Antonio Carpenè, the man whose name is borne by the bottle, sounds like one fascinating dude. He was a pioneer in Italy of scientific winemaking. Armed with a Chemistry degree from the University of Pavia, he turned away from a professorship at the University of Bologna to found the first modern winery, Carpene-Malvolti, in the Veneto in 1868 (hence the wine’s name) as well as founding the Istituto Conegliano, which is now the largest technical winemaking school in the world.

Now, one might suggest that he was a little too deeply ingrained with science. His son was named “Rubidium” and his daughter was named Etile, which is the Italian spelling of “Ethyl.” He was going to name his second daughter “Oenocyanin” – after the pigment in grape skins, and I can imagine the…um…conversation that followed. The daughter ended up being named “Mary,” who eventually carried on the family tradition by naming her first son “Iridium.” Takes all kinds.

In any case, in the 1930’s, Carpene’s sone, Antonio Carpene, Jr. decided to apply a new method of wine carbonation to Prosecco. This method, called Metodo Italiano or the “Charmat Method,” is a less expensive, less time-consuming carbonation method than the tried-and-true method Champenoise. In the Charmat Method, rather than being carbonated in bottles, the wine undergoes this secondary fermentation in steel tanks, which are sometimes coated in enamel. The wine is bottled under pressure in a continuous process. The grape varieties like Glera used in Prosecco respond positively to this method, maintaining their flavor characteristic much more firmly.

So, back to this bottle of bubbles. Prosecco is often an aperitif, but the tasting notes indicated that it

would be a good match for a fish dish. Since the Sweet Partner in Crime and I had a meal of slow-roasted salmon filets with a horseradish-yogurt sauce and some roasted balsamic potatoes in the queue, we decided to throw this in the fridge and hope for the best with those somewhat difficult to pair flavors.

My first impression was that the flavor profile in general was much richer than a “typical” Prosecco. The nose is floral with a hint of yeast and caramel. I found big peachy-pear flavors on the front end which led me to expect a Moscato-style sweetness. Instead, the palate is soft and quite dry. The carbonation is pleasantly sharp, finishing cleanly with a long, pleasant peach finish. Quite pleasant to enjoy on its own. AFter enjoying this wine with our meal, I imagine this wine could be a Swiss Army knife of pairings for a Prosecco lover. It has enough carbonation to clean the palate of a creamy sauce like the one we used, while it still had enough flavor to balance the starch and cut through the oil in the fish.

The price of the Valdobbiadene area wines tends to be a bit higher, but I thought it was every bit the equal to the Crede, which I previously reviewed – but at $19, it’s several dollars a bottle less. If you’re looking to explore some of those wines, this would be a nice entry into higher-end Prosecco. Is it a bit of a reach for an everyday sparkler? Probably, but I think you’ll enjoy the flavors within, whatever or whomever you have it with.

Reclassifying Italian Wine -- and a triple from Acinum

Just when I think I had this whole Italian wine naming convention down pat, I come to learn that those folks have gone and changed the rules on us.

Actually, this happened a few years ago, but the newly named wines are finding their way to our shores now, so we might as well get ourselves good and caught up. So, what’s the story?

As you might remember from this space previously, there are – or more accurately, were -- four basic classifications for Italian wine, based on how and from where the grapes are sourced. The old designations, which you can find on any bottle of Italian wine were:

·         DOC – short for Denominazione di Origine Controllata, which means that the wine is made under a certain set of standards for a particular region, like Chianti. There is some flexibility for wine makers working under a “DOC” label. These are generally the standard wines from an area.

·         DOCG – short for Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita. These wines are made under stricter rules than DOC wines. They are from particular vineyards, have strict aging standards, and tend to be the highest quality wines from a region, like a Chianti Classico.

·         VDT – short for Vino da Tavola, which translates as “table wine” and is…well…exactly that. Generally inexpensive wine made to be drunk young.

·         IGT – short for Indicazione Geografica Tipica. This designation, technically a subcategory of vino da tavola, was created for wines that don’t fall under the general classification system, but are considered of high quality. “Super Tuscan” wines fall into this category.

When I received a set of Italian samples recently, a couple of the bottles were labeled “DOP” – which reminds me of some sort of hair product. A little research led to the discovery that in 2011, the Italian wine industry had changed these designations. The new ones are:

·         VDT – again, table wine, but the primary grape varietal must be listed on the label.

·         IGP – short for Indicazione Geografica Protetta, and is identical in standards to the old “IGT” designation. IGP is now a separate category from VDT. An IGP wine must pass certain standards for aging and quality -- which differentiate it from VDT.

·         DOC and DOCG wines are now both subcategories of DOP. DOP, or Denominazione d'Origine Protetta, is more often now applied to foodstuffs like tomatoes. DOP is basically a guarantee that, yes, an item is actually produced in a particular area of Italy. DOP and DOC are now used somewhat interchangeably, while DOCG is still the mark of highest quality. All DOP wines must now include a vintage, with the exception of sparkling wines.

Or, if you'd prefer a more visual version (click to embiggen):

Many thanks to Italia Wijn!

The DOP and IGP classifications are also used for other Italian foodstuffs like tomatoes, cheese, meats, etc. In those cases, the designation indicates that the items were actually produced in particular regions, using particular standards of quality. IGP is considered less stringent than DOP. Look at a can of real Italian tomatoes next time you’re at the grocery store and you can see what I mean.

The aforementioned samples,from Maggie at Colangelo, are from Acinum wines – a new producer from the Veneto region. “Acinum” is Latin for “Grape,” and these wines are intended to provide relatively low-cost, high quality Italian juice.

  

Acinum (NV) Prosecco Extra Dry DOP – Quite a nice Prosecco. Very pleasant flavors. Straightforwardly crisp flavor of lemon at first sip, with a lively carbonation. The flavors settle into a lemon crème and pear palate which smooths nicely into little acidic tingles at the back end. Just a very pleasant sparkler. My sister was visiting the Sweet Partner in Crime and I when we opened this over brunch. We had it with an arugula salad with roasted butternut squash & white sweet potatoes, toasted walnuts, and pomegranate seeds in a citrus and sesame oil dressing. Made easy what would have been a somewhat difficult pairing. Also makes great mimosas! $11.

Acinum 2014 Soave Classico DOP –The Acinum Soave isn’t the lean, acid-driven sipper that many of its Italian compatriots are. A much fuller-bodied white than your Pinot Grigio or Vernacchia, the Soave is a richer, creamier experience. The nose is quite floral, a bit of a “Viognier-lite” in character. The first tastes are quite fruity, but the body is quite silky and elegant, full of honey and pears. The finish does turn slightly acidic, but in a very pleasant manner that makes it quite food friendly. While suggested as an aperitif or with fish, we had this with a braised chicken with fennel and white sweet potatoes (can you guess what we got in the farmshare this week?) and it more than held its own. $11.

Acinum 2012 Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG – Amarone is one of the biggest, most expensive Italian wines. Made from raisinated grapes, these wines generally pack quite a punch. This one is dense and full without being heavy. I got leather, plum, and a little raisin on the fragrant nose. Big concentrated dark fruit flavors were followed by a shot of smoke on the palate. Lots of structure with a great balance between fruit and tannin. Certainly a muscular wine, but no one flavor takes over too much. The finish goes on and on with blackberry and smoky tannin. I could easily get remnants of flavor after well over a minute. Strong and elegant. Well done. The pricetag on this one stunned me. Retail on this one is $55, which seems high – but many Amarone will run you that for a half-bottle. Snag for a special occasion.

If you’re a little confused by the shifts in designations, don’t worry. A little extra research turned up the fact that while winemakers must register with the government under the new naming conventions, their labeling can remain basically the same. So, for the most part, don’t worry about IGT/DOC/DOCG going away or referring to new things anytime soon. Keep calm and drink on.