For Italians, aperitif time is a daily moment of celebration. They get together with friends and raise their glasses in a toast, even if there’s no important occasion to celebrate, apart from the end of the working day and the start of the evening’s leisure time. And there’s no better wine for a perfectly Italian aperitif than Prosecco Superiore DOCG - the modern, informal and cheerful sparkling white that’s made in the hills of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene in the Veneto region, some 50 km from Venice and 100 km from the Dolomites.
The production area covers 15 municipalities in the province of Treviso, where 185 wineries produce approximately 90 million bottles per year, sold in 140 countries around the world. Of the 8,000 hectares of vineyards, 294 are reserved for the production of Prosecco Superiore with the menzione Rive, which in the local dialect means the steepest hillsides, where harvesting can only be done by hand and yields are low; and almost 108 hectares are dedicated to the production of Superiore di Cartizze, a menzione that represents the highest quality of the appellation.
The grapes used to make Prosecco Superiore have been grown in this area for more than three centuries, and it was also here that Italy’s first school of enology was founded in 1876. Since 1969, Prosecco from Conegliano Valdobbiadene has been protected by DOC status, and since 2009 it has been a DOCG, the denomination reserved for Italy’s most important and prestigious wines. Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG is mostly produced using the tank method of secondary fermentation, which means it retains all the aromatic freshness of the grapes.
Prosecco is recognizable for its fragrant, fruity and floral bouquet and, depending on the level of residual sugar, it is classified as Extra Brut, Brut, Extra Dry and Dry.
This variety makes it extremely versatile in food pairings, and suitable as an accompaniment to the whole meal, from an antipasto of cured meats or fish right through to dessert. Extra Brut - the most recent type marketed - is the driest Prosecco and at the table it is a particularly good match for crudités and first courses from land or sea. Brut is great with fish and vegetable antipasti, seafood starters and baked fish.
Extra Dry is recommended above all as an aperitif, but it also goes well with vegetable soups, seafood, fresh cheeses, salads with white meat (try it with Caesar Salad) and pasta with delicate meat sauces.
Lastly, Dry is the sweetest type: it is traditionally served with sweet pastries, but it’s also incredible with the sweet and sour and spicy dishes of fusion cuisine. Whichever Prosecco Superiore you choose, it should always be enjoyed at a temperature of 6-8 degrees C, in a fairly large tulip-shaped glass, allowing the fresh fruit and flower aromas to circulate freely.