The Best Sparkling Wine You’ve Never Heard Of (VIDEO)

Franciacorta

The glitz and glamor that go along with Northern Italy’s passion for fashion has gotten them all of the international glory, until now. The same region that makes some of the most sought after Italian brands in the world (Prada, Gucci, Ferrari) has been hiding away Italy’s best kept secret. With one sip of this elegant and effervescent sparkling wine you will see why Franciacorta is giving Champagne and Cava a run for the money.

Franciacorta is a small territory between Milan and Verona in the Italian region of Lombardy. While still wines have been produced in Franciacorta since the 16^th century, its modern sparkling wine history is only a little over 50 years old. The area produces some one of the highest quality sparkling wines in the world and The Best Sparkling Wine You Have Never Heard Of: Franciacorta. 

Wine Oh TV‘s Monique Soltani traveled to Northern Italy and toured and explored one of the most dynamic and fastest-growing wine areas in Europe. In this video, shot on location in the heartland of Italy’s most celebrated sparkling wine region, Monique introduces us to some of the first families of Franciacorta, gets to the bottom of what makes this sparkling wine so special, and finds out why you haven’t been able to get your hands on one of Italy’s most prestigious products.

Thank you to the Consorzio Franciacorta and Balzac Communications for sponsoring my first trip to Franciacorta and making it possible for me to share what I learned with all of you!

Franciacorta Facts

1967: Through a Decree of the President of the Italian Republic Franciacorta wins recognition as a Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC: Denomination of Registered Origin) zone.

5 March 1990: Birth of the Consorzio Franciacorta

1995: Approval of the DOCG designation

2010: Revision of the Production Code

105: Member producers

19: Communes that make up Franciacorta (including Brescia)

2,800: Hectares of vineyard dedicated to Franciacorta DOCG (82% Chardonnay, 14% Pinot Noir, 4% Pinot Bianco)

350: Hectares dedicated to Curtefranca DOC

3,150: Total hectares in Franciacorta dedicated to denomination wines

The Wines: The area’s venerable wineries, which have now become modern cathedrals to advanced winemaking practices, produce the various styles of Franciacorta (non vintage, Vintage, Rosé, Satèn, Riserva) as well as Curtefranca DOC Bianco and Rosso, and Sebino IGT, the still wines of Franciacorta.

The Name: Today, the wine label simply reads Franciacorta, a single term that identifies the growing area, the production method, and the wine. In all of Europe, only 10 denominations enjoy this privilege, and of these, only three pertain to re-fermentation in the bottle: Cava, Champagne, and Franciacorta.

Production periods of Franciacorta styles

• minimum 18 months – Franciacorta
• minimum 24 months – Non-vintage Franciacorta  Satèn and Franciacorta  Rosé
• minimum 30 months – Vintage-dated Franciacorta Vintage
• minimum 60 months – Franciacorta Riserva