Prosecco – better than Champagne!

Ah, Prosecco.  A wonderful Italian drink.  It’s a bubbly straw-yellow white wine which often comes from the Conegliano-Valdobbiadenearea areas of Italy.  Actually, Prosecco comes in still, semi-sparkling or fully sparkling varieties.

The popular semi-sparkling variety is, from my own experience, not quite as fizzy as bubbly Champagne, and it seems to be much lighter and fresher, not to mention often being considerably cheaper.

Prosecco

Italians drink extra dry Prosecco as an aperitif, but it is a lovely accompaniment for vegetable soups, seafood, pasta dishes with a light meat sauce, fresh cheeses and white meats.

The other, and more modern variety of Prosecco is the Brut variety which goes well with simple or elaborate fish and vegetables hors d’oeuvres, seafood first courses and baked fish.  In the area in which this wine is produced, Brut Prosecco is drunk throughout meals.

In today’s Food and Wine Friday feature, you will see a fun YouTube video by a chap who reviews three Prosecco’s which can be found in the USA.  Then I’ll tell you about a Prosecco I tried recently, and which I am definitely going to try once again.  Finally, I’ll tell you about a Prosecco experience of mine, down in Umbria.

Prosecco. Sparkling Wines From Italy

This is not your usual wine review, and the wine reviewer, one Gary Vaynerchuk, is quite a character too, but he seems to be very enthusiastic about Italian Prosecco wines, as indeed, everyone should be; adds this blogger about Italy blatantly, and unashamedly!

Canevel Prosecco

Canevel Prosecco

The other day a friend of ours was celebrating a little achievement of hers, and she brought us a bottle of Canevel Prosecco.  This dryish Prosecco had been recommended to her by the chap in one of our local wine shops.  And it was darned good.  Cost: a whole eight Euros!

The bottle is rather attractive too, in a voluptuous sort of way.  The alcohol content is 11%, so its not at all heady, unlike those full bodied Sicilian reds, for example.

A Prosecco Moment

Indeed, Prosecco makes an ideal summer drink, and one of my most memorable Prosecco moments was when I sipped a glass or two in an outdoor restaurant situated in the midst of a stunningly beautiful and atmospheric little medieval hilltop town in Umbria, one gloriously balmy summer evening, before tucking in to our evening meal.  A memorable experience, which I shall never forget.  It was one of those ‘Wow, I’m lucky to be living in Italy’ occasions!

My magical Prosecco moment took place in the lovely little town of Montone, which I know is a long way from Prosecco country.  Still, this has no bearing, the Prosecco added to the evening, but while Montone would be an excellent place to go to drink Prosecco, and to see in its own right, you just have to have a glass or two of Prosecco when you find yourself in Italy, preferably in the evening in some idyllic little Italian town.  Don’t worry, Italy has more than enough idyllic little towns to keep you going for quite a number of vacations if not a lifetime.

Montone, Umbria, Italy

Prosecco v Champagne

Just for fun, grab a few bottles of a nice Prosecco, like the Canevel mentioned above, and a few bottles of Champagne, and serve them both up without telling anyone what they are.  I think you will find that most of your guests will be suitably impressed, and will most likely finish off the Prosecco well before they drink the Champers bottles dry.

For me, there is no contest.  I’d choose Prosecco over Champagne any time, any place, and anywhere!

Right, I’m off to have a glass of Prosecco as an aperitif in a local bar this very evening while my little one does his Judo lesson.  Writing this has brought on another of those ‘Prosecco moments’!

Oh and although Prosecco makes a great summer drink, it actually goes down rather well all year round.  It would make an excellent alternative to Champagne at Christmas, for example.  Not a bad Christmas gift, either.

Some sites for you to visit:

Information about Prosecco in generel, from an aptly named site:  Prosecco.it – in English

The Canevel producers site, in Italian: Canevel

Glorious hilltop town in Umbria:  Montone – Municipal Site – in Italian, alas.