Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore D.O.C.G. – Special Feature

Valdobbiadene’s hills have generally produced off-dry, plump, fragrant, frothy, creamy and easy-drinking sparkling wines of sweet fruit flavours with mild effervescence. This modern, golden age of Superiore D.O.C.G. is seeing more and more of a dry style. Of great forward thinking importance is the observation that wines are presenting from lower pH levels and with higher acidities, increasingly rearing their teeth and gaining traction, especially when a balance is struck with the tenets of rich and concentrated. The barely off-dry impression and chalky notation help to increase the curiosity factor and gather the masses to enjoy what pleasures Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore D.O.C.G. has to offer. If the bottle says Prosecco Superiore the consumer can be sure it has been sourced from the hills between Conegliano and Valdobbiadene for sparkling wines that are juicy, explosive and blessed with an impressive depth of flavour.

These last several years have seen a transformational time and an increase in quality across Valdobbiadene. A change of the guard and an ushering in of a new generation is surely responsible for the change. Many estates have now been handed down from a parent to their sons and daughters whose new Prosecco marries Valdobbiadene estate glera fruit with that of local growers. The examples of Brut dosage, in and around 10 g/L of residual sugar show developed and added complexity. They are sharp, steely and exciting, platinum Prosecco, by hue yes but more so a mineral clarity and a no lo so that goes beyond, or better yet, elevates affordable Italian method sparkling wine. They can be herbal as well, with notes like thyme and sage, always creamy on the palate, truly settled and fulsome Prosecco. Proper Prosecco if you will. These wines are fine departures from reliable if simple DOC wines, moving away from the utilitarian towards more intensity, complexity and separating from the commercial point.

There too are wines from Belcanto that show greater gregarious character offering increased commercial appeal. These carry more sweetness, aromatically out of the bottle and then on the palate in the form of apples and sugary plum. They are consistently complex and yet sweeter than some, unabashedly so. They also exhibit clean, fresh, fragrant and perfumed qualities so perfectly correct for the regional style, featuring lots of flavour. Notes like tart lemon and lime, green apple and bosc pear, always on an off-dry frame. Bright acids help develop the flavours while length and breadth are always strong. This is the marketable advantage of these wines, unlike any other worldwide, above average in quality, solid and reliable for Prosecco DOCG in the sweeter, extra-dry style.

Regulations, Levels of Quality and a Sense of Place

Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore D.O.C.G. must be produced from a minimum 85 per cent glera, the local grape variety grown extensively for sparkling wine and no more than 15 per cent of the following local varieties; verdiso, biaornchetta, perera and glera lunga. The demination’s wines are obtained almost exclusively by the Italian Method (with a second fermentation in pressurized vats), a technique that was further perfected by Professor Tullio de Rosa of the School of Winemaking in Conegliano. Some producers like to refer to it as the “Metodo Conegliano Valdobbiadene.”

At the base of the quality pyramid sits the most ubiquitous of wine denominations, the Prosecco DOC. One step up is Prosecco DOC Treviso followed by Asolo Prosecco DOCG. At the pinnacle is the presence of highest quality and importance; Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore D.O.C.G. represents the heart and the ideal. The central production zone is found an hour or so north of Venezia in a hilly amphitheatre spread 40 kilometres apart between the villages of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene. The flatter, clay-rich glacial, alluvial and morainic soils of Conegliano are in great contrast to the more hilly, ancient seabeds of moraine and sandstone found in Valdobbiadene. Valdobbiadene is also home to older vines and greater genetic diversity, especially when it comes to the most important grape variety glera.

In the hills of Conegliano Valdobbiadene the highest and most precipitous areas in the region require a great amount of work, dedication and determination from farmers. These are considered the “heroic vineyards” where grapes are picked for Rive wines. The Rive (steep hillsides in the local dialect) are a collection of vineyards identified as a source for the highest quality grapes which are picked by hand. The highest of the quality pyramid is found in these 43 single vineyards or crus whose name comes from the Venetian for “steep slopes.” These special parcels have been given elevated status within the Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore D.O.C.G. zone, often located on the steepest and highest quality hillsides. By rule these crus are subject to lower yields, hand harvesting and must be vintage dated. Some are shared between producers, others are monopoles.

A sense of place is celebrated in the crus and single-vineyard wines, most succinct, singular and expressive when bottled as vintage dated Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore D.O.C.G.  These are the children raised, cared for and nurtured in the small locales of the denomination’s ancient vineyards. Places kept alive by custodians whose passion is to protect and perpetuate old vines often walled in by a clos. The expositions and slopes of these crus contribute to elevating glera to a higher calling. Remember that most Prosecco are produced upon demand and not obtained from 100 per cent glera grapes, nor from just one fermentation in specialized pressurized cuve close tanks for forty days. It is the single-motive sparklers that do share bread-yeasty, toasty, oxidative and verdant-balmy notes with the French Champenoise. They are the benchmark for Italian method bubbles and so worth checking out if you are lucky enough to find them, on shelves, through their agents or just to be offered a sip.

Cartizze

Also new but at the same time very old are the Rive, single vineyard expressions, often from a single hillside. At the apex of such an ideal are the Cartizze, prized vineyard sparkling wines predicated on texture above all else, duly noted by the fine crema of mousse and emulsified Valdobbiadene air. The Italian word Cartizze is derived from the dialectal gardiz which is the reed mat on which grape clusters are placed to dry. The sub-denomination lies within the commune of Valdobbiadene and is a small zone with fewer than 110 hectares of vines on the steepest Valdobbiadene hills; Santo Stefano, Saccol and around the parish of San Pietro di Barbozza north of the Piave River and west of Farra di Soligo. Soils of sandstone and clay marl provide for a glera requiem and necessity to acquiesce over-ripeness and as a result a singular concentration of aromas. It bears reminding that the Superiore di Cartizze and the Rive are never going to commercialize as mass market wines because picking requires a mano heroism and the yields are really low.

Prosecco is one thing and Cartizze are another, ultra-premium Prosecco DOCG that offer full palate distraction, leaving thoughts on other aspects few and far between. When nothing else matters the savour of feel and flavour takes care of everything. In Cartizze the producers take what the vineyard gives and find a way deep into the palate’s heart.  There is no sacrifice to the crispness and croccante qualities of Prosecco Superiore but if Prosecco might be judged as sweet then the sparkling wines of Cartizze hold even greater sweetness. No matter because all other parts are also elevated to find great balance and harmony in the wines.