I had the pleasure of listening to Riccardo Ricci Curbastro speak at a recent IEEM event where we got to taste this wine while learning about the Italian wine scene. As you probably know, a sparkling can not be called a champagne unless it comes from the Champagne region of France. The EU has now made this distinction a reality. So sparklings made in the traditional method are often referred to as Bruts. This wine is different than the Proseccos which Italy is well known for. This particular wine is 60% chard, 30% Pinot Blanc and 10% Pinot Pinot Noir (called Pinot Nero in Italy). By contrast a champagne is sometimes made from pinot noir, pinot meunier and chardonnay. As you may have noticed in the name this wine is NV, or non vintage. What this means is that they blend grapes from different years to create a consistent flavor profile year to year. On with this wine. Pale in color with a lovely crisp varietal champagne nose. On the mid palate the wine matches the nose with beautiful crisp flavors with some mild citrus note. On the long finish the wine displays some crisp lively acidity and lovely mouth grip, living on in the mouth. This is a lovely well made brut. I was truly impressed. It does not have the finer bubbles found in a Prosecco. One could easily close there eyes and mistake this for a French champagne. Now I don’t consider myself an afficiando of champagne, but I thought this was impressive. I would give it an 89 or so. Sadly not in the LCBO but available from Wine Moves for $42.95 a bottle in cases of 6.
