The following is Cinda Chavich’s report on the bubblies of the Prosecco region of Italy, as heard in conversation with host Donna McElligott on CBC Radio Dec. 29, 2006.

listen....

The New Year is almost upon us – time to celebrate with friends and family and toast the passing of another year with a bit of bubbly. While Champagne is the classic drink for this time of year, our food columnist Cinda Chavich is here with a few suggestions about some other kinds of sparkling wine you might try to toast the season.

Q: CHAMPAGNE IS THE TRADITIONAL DRINK TO RING IN THE NEW YEAR. WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CHAMPAGNE AND OTHER KINDS OF BUBBLY?

A: Well, Champagne is the original sparkling wine – first created by monks in the Champagne region of northern France some 200 years ago. Even today, by law, anything labeled “Champagne” must be made from Chardonnay, Pinot Noir or Pinot Meunier grapes grown in this part of France and made in the traditional Champagne way. That means very dry wines are made, blended and bottled, then a bit of extra sugar and yeast is added to each bottle, setting off a second fermentation inside the sealed bottle, which creates carbon dioxide and the characteristic bubbles in the wine. Each bottle then must be “riddled” - that is slowly turned upside down over a period of several weeks until the spent yeast settles in the neck of the bottle. Finally, the neck of the bottle is fast frozen in a nitrogen bath, the plug of dead yeast is “disgorged”  and the bubbly wine is re-corked and sold, without ever leaving its original bottle.

Q: THAT SOUNDS COMPLICATED – AND AN AWFUL LOT OF WORK.

A: It is – which is one reason why traditional Champagne can be expensive – from about $40 to several hundred dollars a bottle.

Which leads me to other less expensive methods of making sparkling wine – such as the way they make bubbly wines in the northern regions of Italy.

I was in the Prosecco region, near Venice, this year, and learned all about how they make the traditional bubbly Prosecco wines there.

Instead of doing a second fermentation of the wine in the bottle, the second fermentation, to create the bubbles, takes place in a sealed tank, which is called the Charmat method. Then the wine is bottled, under pressure in a special bottling machine, to maintain the fizz. This method is faster, easier and less expensive to do – so Proseccos tend to be far less expensive than sparkling wines made in the traditional, bottle-fermented style, usually around $20 a bottle.

Q: SO PROSECCO IS THE NAME OF THE WINE REGION – IS IT ALSO THE NAME OF THE GRAPE?

A: Yes. In Italy, they also make bubbly wines labeled “Prosecco” in other parts of the country, but the true Prosecco DOC wines come from the region just northwest of Venice between the towns of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene in the province of Treviso, made mainly with Prosecco grapes.

This is the area I visited – beautiful medieval towns in the heart of this dramatic, hilly wine region, known not only for sparkling wine, but for growing risotto rice and radicchio, and the Renaissance painters who painted beautiful frescoes on the walls of historic homes and buildings here.

There are more than 100 sparkling or Spumante wineries in the Prosecco region, and they are creating better quality Prosecco wines all the time, and now some of the best are beginning to find their way to Canada.

If you’re looking for the best Prosecco, look for one that says Conegliano-Valdobbiadene DOC on the label. The best of the best – the finest bubbles and best flavors – are labeled Superiore di Cartizze – the Cartizze being the best, steep, south-facing slopes in a tiny part the region where the harvest is later and the grapes riper and more intense.

These Cartizze wines will be the most expensive of the Prosecco wines, but still a bargain relative to the best French Champagnes.

Some of my current favourites are the Rustico from Nino Franco, which is available here for about $21, and the Proseccos from companies like Bortolomiol, Carpene, Col Vetoraz and Bisol.

Q: HOW ELSE IS PROSECCO DIFFERENT FROM CHAMPAGNE?

Because the grapes are different, and the method is different, you can get different flavours and aromas. Aged champagnes can have a toasty, yeasty, bready aroma – a result of the second fermentation in the bottle and aging on the yeast – while Prosecco tends to be more floral and fruity on the nose, which is a result of both the Charmat method, and the fruitier Prosecco grape.

But these days, even in Italy, they are growing Chardonnay and using it in their sparkling wines, so the differences can be slim.

Proscecco is traditionally made a little sweeter than French Champagne – those labeled Brut are usually the driest.

A: ARE THERE OTHER BARGAINS IN THE BUBBLY WINE WORLD?

Yes, there are other producers around the world who make sparkling wine using the traditional French method, including those in Spain, California and even Canada.

Spanish bubblies – called Cava – are made using local grapes and fermented a second time in the bottle like Champagne. They can be very good value – usually less than $20.

There are also some great Canadian bubblies – a couple of my favourites are made in the Okanagan, including Stellar’s Jay, from Sumac Ridge winery, and the sparkling wines from Summerhill Wines in Kelowna. You’ll also find a good sparkling wine from Chateau des Charmes in the Niagara region.

Q: SO WHAT ELSE DO WE NEED TO KNOW ABOUT SERVING BUBBLY WINES?

A: Well, first make sure you have the right glassware – Champagne and other bubblies should be served in a tall, narrow champagne flute or small tulip-shaped glass so that you can watch the tiny bubbles rise in the glass.

Bubblies should be served well chilled – refrigerate or serve from an ice-filled bucket.

And you should be careful when you’re opening a bottle of bubbly – there is a lot of pressure inside that bottle and you don’t want to see corks flying across the room.

I’m going to open this bottle – I hope – as a sommelier would in a restaurant.

First you remove the foil and the bale – that wire cage that holds the cork in place. Make sure you’re not pointing the bottle at anyone because the cork can fly off at this point.

Drape a clean towel over the top of the bottle and grasp the cork through the towel. Hold the base of the bottle with your other hand, with your thumb up in the depression or punt at the bottom, then holding the cork, twist the bottle until the cork is released.

They say the cork should come away with a sigh, not a crack or pop, so let’s see if I can manage to do that.

You never want to shake the bottle or push the cork out – you’ll end up with bubbly wine everywhere except in your glass.

Q: WHEN SHOULD YOU SERVE BUBBLIES?

A: They say the bubbles carry the alcohol in the wine quickly to your brain, which is likely why champagne and bubbles like Prosecco or Cava are traditionally served to kick off a celebration, like New Year’s Eve, or to start a festive party.

I like bubbly as an aperitif, but real Champagne lovers claim it’s a wine that you can drink throughout the meal. This is true, especially with a nice dry sparkling wine, but some people find that the bubbles are difficult to digest. You can opt for a semi-sparkling – called “Frizzante” in Italy or “Cremant” in Champagne – for dining. Or just save the bubbles for drinking before the meal, or with dessert.

Dry sparkling wines usually have a good acidity, with citrus notes, so match well with seafood, oysters and light foods. Bubblies are actually good with salty foods because the salt brings out the fruity flavours – some say champagne is the best match for chips or French fries. Good with sushi and the fresh young cheeses which are also traditionally made in the Prosecco region.

Q: CAN YOU COOK WITH PROSECCO OR OTHER SPARKLING WINE?

A: Yes, you essentially lose the bubbles but these wines can replace a dry white wine in any recipe, whether it’s a butter and white wine reduction for fish or a marinade. I have seen recipes for risotto – the Italian rice dish – made with Prosecco and dessert sorbets or sauces made with bubbly.  You can certainly use it in cocktails, like the famous Bellini of Venice, which is a combination of Prosecco and peach puree. It’s also often mixed with orange juice – blood orange juice at this time of year – or even pomegranate for colourful, bubbly cocktails.

RECIPE:

PROSECCO PUNCH

A festive beverage that combines sparkling white wine and fruit juices – to toast the new year.

2 cups pomegranate or cranberry juice

2 cups pineapple juice

½ cup orange brandy (like Grand Marnier)

1 orange, thinly sliced

750 mL bottle Prosecco (or Cava or other sparkling white wine)

In a large punch bowl or jar, combine the fruit juices, brandy and sliced orange. Refrigerate. Just before serving, stir in the sparkling wine. Serves 6.

©Cinda Chavich

www.tastereport.com