Deep yellow-gold color with hint of rose; apple, peach, rose on the nose; apple, peach, whisper of strawberry on the palate.
Very creamy and silky in the mouth; persistent bubbles; finesse and elegance; delicious sparkling wine. Made with 90% glera grapes and 10% pinot noir.
By rule, Prosecco must contain at least 85% glera grapes. For years, Zonin made only 100% glera Prosecco. This is a new “Dress Code” collection of Prosecco blends: Black, Grey (pinot grigio added) and White (pinot bianco added). Casa Vincola Zonin is Italy’s largest privately held wine company and owns the largest glera vineyards in the country, regardless of ownership structure.
Prosecco is a wonderfully versatile wine. It sparkles as an aperitif. Every party or meal should start with this affordable, delicious, palate-pleasing pour. The world apparently agrees—Prosecco is the big thing in wine now, with sales soaring, exports up 67% in the past three years and Italy having its largest glera harvest ever in 2015. By DOC law, Prosecco can only be made in five Veneto provinces (Treviso, Venice, Vincenza, Padua, and Belluno) and four Friuli Venezia Giulia provinces (Gorizia, Pordenone, Trieste, and Udine). If you draw a line between the cities of Trieste, Venice, and Verona, the area north to the Austrian border is a very rough idea of the Prosecco region in northeastern Italy.
Glera is a green-skinned grape. It likely is not a single variety but comes in three main sub-types: Glera Lungo, Glera Tondo, and Glera Nostrano. They are all similar, but the DNA is not quite the same. As happens in Italy, there are even more subdivisions that are different without there being a distinction—only white coats in labs could tell you which is which.
Glera is highly productive, allowing for the ocean of juice that helps fuel—along with the bulk Charmat production process—the affordable price of Prosecco compared to Champagne. Glera is high in acidity and fairly neutral on the palate, making it ideal for sparkling wine. Glera’s aromatics typically are described as white peaches. It is light bodied and low in alcohol, which is why it is superb as an aperitif. The acidity and somewhat neutral taste also is why it goes well with many foods.
The Zonin “Dress Code” collection of Prosecco blends (White, Grey, Black) is an impressive addition to the rapidly expanding world of Prosecco experiences. I reviewed White and Grey previously if you want to know more about them. They are on my Facebook page (Gus Clemens on Wine), also on my website: http://www.gusclemens.com. Usually the easiest way to find one of my reviews is to Google with wine’s name and include Gus Clemens in the search string. If you Google “zonin gus clemens,” it will give you links to the reviews at the top of the page. Same is true for most of my other reviews.
Casa Vinicola Zonin Prosecco Black Edition NV. $14-15
Second photo: Zonin Prosecco/glera vineyard
