PROSECCO VARIETY
ABOUT THE GRAPES
Our Prosecco Brut is made from several local grape varieties. The most important of these is the rustic and vigorous Glera, which has hazel-coloured shoots and fairly large, elongated, loosely-packed bunches (with a “wing”) and handsome golden yellow berries that stand out against the bright green of the leaves. The first written documentation of its presence in the area dates back to 1772, in the 8th volume of the “Giornale d’Italia”, in which the scholar Francesco Maria Malvolti speaks about the quality of the local viticulture.
Glera gives the wine of Conegliano Valdobbiadene its basic structure, but small proportions of Verdiso, Perera and Bianchetta, local varieties that are considered as minor but which are very useful for giving the wine a satisfying, harmonious structure, may also be used, as well as Pinot and Chardonnay.
Verdiso has been cultivated in the zone since the 18th century, and it was already fairly widely grown in the 19th. It is used to increase the wine’s acidity and zestiness. Perera, which was also widespread at the beginning of the last century, is used to heighten the wine’s perfumes and aromas. Its name derives from the shape of the berries or - as some maintain - from its distinctive taste, which recalls that of pears. Lastly, Bianchetta, documented as early as the 16th century, serves to make the wine more mellow in cold years because it is an early ripener. For this reason it is often to be found, along with Verdiso, in the areas that are highest and most difficult to cultivate.
ABOUT THE D.O.C.G. GROWING AREA
The area lies in the Veneto, 50 km from Venice, in the hilly strip of the Province of Treviso lying between the small towns of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene. It is equidistant from the Dolomites and the Adriatic, a particular situation that has a positive effect on the climate. The terrain is difficult to cultivate but with a special charm, with its vineyards perched high on the steep hillsides where it is hard even to remain standing. Here the vine-growers have made the hillsides their own a centimetre at a time, thus creating a unique landscape whose beauty is such that the producers have applied for the area to become a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The production zone comprises fifteen communes and stretches over an area of around 20,000 hectares. Vines are grown only on the most sunny parts of the hills, at altitudes varying between 50 and 500 metres above sea level, while the north-facing slopes are covered mainly in woodland.