As a country, our love affair with Prosecco is growing stronger. Recent figures show that sales of the Italian sparkling wine were up by 75% with all the top major supermarkets recording growth sales year on year. Sales have now overtaken those of Champagne for the first time. Basically, we love the stuff!
Some of the discount retailers such as Aldi and Lidl offer Prosecco at a cracking price of under £6 a bottle which is contributing to the success. However, many leading industry experts believe that this could be harming the brand and believe that many of the producers would be shocked at this price point here in the UK. This though has helped to turn the brand into the perfect alternative to Champagne. That, plus the fact that we prefer the style that Prosecco produces. The light, softer, fruitier characters tend to appeal to us more. It can also be in a less bubbly style (Frizzante) which we also love.
Prosecco, like Champagne can only come from one particular region, the Veneto in North West Italy. The vineyards are centered around two towns, Valdobbiadene and Conegliano. The best examples of Prosecco come from this DOCG with the very best coming from Cartizze, a small area located within the Conegliano Valdobbiadene DOCG where the grapes are grown on very steep vineyards. The term ‘Rive’ which you may see on a bottle denotes that the wine was made from the best grapes from the steepest vineyards.
The grape variety used is the Glera, which until 2010 was known as Prosecco, however the name was changed to stop producers in other parts of the country growing the grape and passing the wine off as Prosecco. The production method differs to Champagne which is the reason for the difference in price. With Champagne, more yeast is added to the bottle where the secondary fermentation takes place . The wine is then aged for a minimum of 18 months, usually longer and then disgorged. With Prosecco, the secondary fermentation takes place in the tank ( Charmat Method) therefore the yeast cells can be filtered out which is less time consuming as the process of disgorgement is not required. Where the majority of Prosecco is made in this way, producers in the Conegliano Valdobbiadene DOCG area are allowed to use the traditional method as used in Champagne.
The sales trends that suppliers are witnessing indicate that our Prosecco love affair is going to continue for some time, but while Champagne has never left our hearts, who will ultimately win the battle of the bubbles?
In the meantime try these.
Marks and Spencer Prosecco - £8.00 per bottle (Special Offer)
It has a lovely floral nose with a light and crisp flavour with hints of lemon and apple and pear characters.
Majestic Rivermonte Prosecco NV DOC £7.49 (when you buy 2 or more)
Delicate flavour with bags of tropical fruit flavours.
Aldi Belltti Prosecco NV £5.29
Light and soft with lots of fruit characters - this is a real bargain!