Sparkling Italian Wine

Prosecco is a famous sparkling wine made in notheastern Italy with the Charmat Method (using pressurized tanks). Other styles made in this method are Asti (in the Piedmont region) and Lambrusco, which is a sparkling red wine from the Emiglia-Romagna region. If you're looking for something with more complexity, try Franciacorta (a sparkling wine from the Lombardy region) or Trento DOC (from the Trentino region in northern Italy). Both are made in the Traditional Method (like Champagne).

Prosecco is made in the Charmat Method, in which the wine undergoes the second (carbonation-creating) fermentation in a pressurized tank. This method typically leads to cleaner, fruitier sparkling wines. Champagne, on the other hand, is made in the Méthode Champenoise (called the “Traditional Method” when used elsewhere). In this method, the second fermentation occurs in the bottle, which typically leads to fine bubbles. The wine also ages with its leftover yeast cells (called “lees”) for an extended period of time, giving the finished wine notes of toast, brioche or biscuit.

Italian sparkling is a versatile choice for food, thanks its fresh bubbles cleansing the palate for the next bite. They pair especially well with Prosciutto, fried appetizers, seafood, light pasta and more.

Italian sparkling wine ranges from extremely dry to sweet. For dry sparkling wines, look for "Brut Nature," "Brut" and "Extra Brut." Note that "Extra Dry" is actually a slightly sweet style, which has 12-17 grams of residual sugar per liter. And if you're looking for noticeably sweet sparkling wine, try "Demi-Sec" or "Dolce."