Yellow with hints of green color; green apple, grapefruit nose; grapefruit, Meyer lemon, pinch of peach on the palate.
Crisp, brisk, medium-full body, persistent tiny bubbles (making this a spumante prosecco), fruity sweetness; 100% glera, the classic grape of prosecco, grown on Veronese pergolas, which means grapes and vines are above the picker’s heads. The pergola system is common in northern Italy and in parts of Spain and Portugal where there is plenty of rain.
The term “extra dry” may confuse some people, because it actually means there is hint of sweetness. There are eight levels of sweetness in sparkling wine: brut nature (0-3 grams of sugar per litre); extra brut (0-6); brut (0-12); extra dry, extra sec, extra seco (12-17); dry, sec, seco (17-32); demi-sec, semi-seco (32-50); doux, sweet, dulce (50+). As with so much in wine, there is margin for error wiggle room, so it is possible for a brut to be as sweet as an extra dry (or an extra dry to be as dry as a brut, for that matter).
This wine is made in Treviso, just north of Venice. Acinum is a collection of wines selected by Fabrizio Pedrolli to showcase the wines of northeastern Italy, specifically the historic wine areas of Veneto, Negrar in Valpolicella, and Monforte d’Alpone in Soave.
Prosecco is the next big thing in wine because of its vivid fruit, light alcohol, and perceived sweetness (the sweetness comes from the fruit, not from sugar). In a sense, the prosecco boom is a natural evolution up from white zinfandel. Prosecco is more complex and nuanced without getting into tannin and oak issues. Plus, it has bubbles. This is classic Veneto prosecco. Splendid as an apéritif or as ingredient in Bellini cocktail (puréed white peaches and prosecco). $10
