Franciacorta - Italy's Answer to Champagne
Italy has not one but 2 distinct wine regions that produce equally luxurious, elegant, crisp traditional method Champagne style sparkling wines. The most prestigious sparkling wine in Italy is Franciacorta DOCG, located in Lombardy, Italy. The other is Trentino-Alto Adige region. The wines are austere, elegant with a fine, creamy mousse of bubbles. The soils in the region are mineral-rich soils, granular-sized, calcareous gravel and sandy glacial soils that cover a limestone bedrock. Situated at the extreme northern edge of the Po Valley, south of Lake Iseo and alpine valleys all help mitigating effect on temperatures in both summer and winter.
The wines are made from similar grapes as Champagne - Chardonnay, Pinot Noir (locally called Pinot Nero), and Pinot Blanc (locally called called Pinot Blanco). They are labeled “method traditional or metodo Classico” synonymous for traditional method distinguishes them from the Spumante sparklers that are made in the tank method, i.e. Asti Spumante. The wines are made in both non vintage and vintage dated. Rosé Franciacorta is also made. Like Champagne, the wines have to spend at least 18 months on lees for non-vintage, at least 30 months for Franciacorta Millesimato (Vintage dated) and at least 60 months for vintage Franciacorta Riserva. The wines range from zero dosage (0-3g/l) to Demi-Sec (32-50g/l) Sparkling wines are meant to be very well chilled to 38–45°F / 3-7°C
Mirabella’s priority is to produce wine that is tied to the land that created it. Through their area of viticulture practices, sustainability and use of the most modern technologies excels them as top quality sparkling wines. This Edea wine is made of Chardonnay 80%, Pinot Bianco 20%. Hand harvested, gentle pressing, fermentation with selected yeasts at a controlled temperature of 16-18° C in cement vats and minimum 24 months on the lees in bottle. The wine is a pale yellow color, brut style with golden apple, lemon, pear, grapefruit, hazelnut, peach, yeast, brioche, banana and floral aromas and flavors. It has a light body, low alcohol and high acidity.
Similar to Champagne, Franciacorta pairs well with many foods or enjoyed at any time during a meal - soft ripened cheeses (like brie), dried fruits, roasted salted nuts, charcuterie to spring risotto, chicken Milanese, pork cutlets with lemon thyme sauce or stuffed chicken breasts with prosciutto, basil and mozzarella.
