I am going to start this Wines to Admire column with an acknowledgment of my own biases as a wine expert. That is to say, I am too close to the subject matter of Italian fine wine to be a good judge of Prosecco. I know: how does that make sense? Well, hear me out.
“Fine wine experts” should be reminded more often that wine is about joy. And Prosecco gives people joy.
Prosecco as a category is plagued by sameness. It just is, and so in the pursuit of compelling stories and caché-building wine selections, many of us look elsewhere. However, Prosecco’s sameness is the kind of reliability that people love. Really love. There is something to be said for knowing that you’ll hit the sweet-spot of a particular pleasure in the glass.
I don’t need to get into why Prosecco is popular, why it dominates world sparkling wine exports, or why it drives Italian wine market share. Others have done that for us. But on an anecdotal level, I see it all the time: When I pour a proper Prosecco for guests, they relax, they smile, they rave about it. This is a good thing. “Fine wine experts” should be reminded more often that wine is about joy. And Prosecco gives people joy.
It also opens the door to everything else Italian, especially when it comes from a smaller producer with a story. This, too, is a good thing.
A Sparkling Anecdote and a Word of Warning
In conjunction with the release of my new book, I’ve been hosting a series of private, backyard book launch parties here at my home in Denver. They’ve been a chance to introduce the book to family, friends, and colleagues in the Denver wine scene, who then promptly refer me to other wine lovers who might be interested in a copy of the book. These parties have been great for sales, and for those attending, they’ve been a great introduction to the fine wines featured inside the book (plus a few that narrowly missed the cut).
The brilliant, precise and elegant wines of Valdobbiadene producer Col Vetoraz falls into the latter category. Of the 100 Wines to Admire in the back of the book, I opted to include seven that were sparkling, and of those seven, I listed one Prosecco — a shapely and evocative col fondo from a different producer that, to me, best represents where this category of wines ought to go in the future.
But Col Vetoraz was in close consideration, and not only because of the refined quality of their wines across the board, but for their bold stance to avoid the name “prosecco” in their labeling. Their objective is to elevate the Valdobbiadene DOCG as a terroir-centric, sense-of-place term that elicits something else to wine drinkers. Something above and beyond Prosecco.
I admire their spunk in such a decision. Ultimately, however, the Glera grape combined with the tank-method only gets you so far removed from Prosecco. This is a wine that is what it is — i.e. pure simple pleasure — but it is different on one key level: it has serious persistence. The “Coste di Levante” is a sparkling wine that wants to run, and I believe that’s the difference here. Chalk it up to meticulous viticulture and vinification, which has long been a differentiator at the estate. My guests certainly perked up whenever this was in their glass. Palate primed, it gave me a natural segue to pour a lovely Verdicchio, a focused Etna Bianco, or dazzling Soave.
Good Italian wine merchants and somms know this: Prosecco with this kind of persistence can fuel the journey ahead. Let’s avoid the crappy ones, but maybe not the term entirely. People we need as the next generation of wine lovers want it. Dismissing what they love dismisses them.
2023 Col Vetoraz “Coste di Levante” Valdobbiadene Prosecco Brut
Valdobbiadene DOCG (Veneto )
Grapes: Glera (100%)
Alcohol: 11.5%
Opinion: ★★★★ 3/4
Food-friendliness: Selective
Value: Exceptional
A beginner might like … elevating their Prosecco game with a wine that aspires to be — and largely resides — above the fray. The price point may be a little more than everyday wines from this category, but considering the steep vineyards that yield the fruit for “Coste di Levante,” the extra cost (roughly $27-$35) is actually a worthwhile expense.
A wine obsessive might like … the persistence of this sparkling wine. If there is a constant knock on Charmat/Martinotti method sparkling wine, it’s that the finish can often feel stunted. I never sensed this across the portfolio of wines I tasted from Col Vetoraz.
Note: This wine was provided as a sample. Learn more about my editorial policy.
