08 Oct Reach For The Stars, and a Glass of Franciacorta

It is not Champagne; It is not Prosecco; It is not Cava. It IS a sparkling wine. It is the sparkling wine of the stars. It is Franciacorta, a small district in Italy making wines for the stars and you! And, if the stars are all drinking Franciacorta, why should you? I told you why in a story for Men’s Journal which I am sharing here.

The stars that drink Franciacorta come from both the entertainment and culinary worlds. Franciacorta has been the official sparkling wine of the Emmy Awards for four years. At the recent 76th Emmy Awards, guests of the Governors Gala tasted different Franciacorta styles from different producers at the Franciacorta Bar. And Franciacorta is the exclusive Sparkling Wine Partner of the MICHELIN Guide ceremonies in the U.S., as well as a sponsor of the Sommelier of the Year Awards for the next three years.

If the stars are all drinking Franciacorta, why should you?

Franciacorta is a small region in Lombardy, Italy, with only 7700 acres of vines, compared to Champagne’s almost 85,000 acres. Franciacorta is shaped like an amphitheater and is surrounded by mountains. It is 77 square miles on the hills located between the southern shore of Lake Iseo and the city of Brescia. There are 19 municipalities where Franciacorta can be made and there are 122 producer-owned wineries.

The region may be small, but the tradition is old. Franciacorta does not mean “short France” but rather comes from the arrival of Medieval monks in AD 1000. The area was called “Francae Curtes,” or free courts, and was a tax-free area. Franzacurta appears in the Brescia annals and business records in 1277, again in 1570 written as Mordacious (sparkling) Franzacurta wine and again in 1809 in the Napoleonic register. The first Pinot di Franciacorta was in 1960 and in 1967 the Franciacorta DOC was established. Then in 1995, Franciacorta was the first to produce Metodo Classico DOCG wines.

The primary grape of Franciacorta is Chardonnay but there is also Pinot Nero (17%), and Pinot Bianco (3%). And, the indigenous variety Erbamat has been brought back from extinction, now used to add acidity to the blend.

Franciacorta is the most self-imposed regulated region in Italy, raising the bar higher every time they change the rules. The process is controlled from the vineyard through production. At 9.5 tons per hectare, they have the lowest yields for any sparkling wine area. 66% of the vineyards are certified organic. Franciacorta is the first Consorzio to monitor gas emissions, CO2 soil absorbing capacity, and ethical labor, monitoring the role of the workers from top to bottom.

The soils of Franciacorta consist of stony hills and calcareous soils. Cool wind comes from the north and the diurnal shifts which vary at least 18 degrees from day to night, enable the grapes to ripen while maintaining their acidity and freshness. The proximity of the lake mitigates the cold in the winter.

Franciacorta produces all styles of sparkling wine, from dry to sweet, but 77% of the production is Brut. Franciacorta Brut is required to age a minimum of 18 months and can be made with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Bianco (maximum 50%), and Erbamat (maximum 10%). Satèn, a Blanc de Blanc made from Chardonnay and a maximum of 50% Pinot Bianco, make up 12.5% of the total production. Satèn is a slightly lower bottle pressure resulting in a silkier texture and can only be made Brut style. Franciacorta Rosé can be made with Pinot Noir (35% minimum), Chardonnay (65% maximum), Pinot Bianco (50% maximum), and Erbamat (10% maximum) and must age for a minimum of 24 months. Vintage Franciacorta must be 85% from a single vintage and age for a minimum of 30 months and Riserva must age for a minimum of 60 months.

With all of these styles, here are six Franciacorta wines to try:

• Castello Bonomi CruPerdu 2019 Franciacorta Brut – Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, aged 36+ months
• Bontadi Castaldi 2019 Franciacorta Satèn Brut – 100% Chardonnay, aged for 30-36 months
• Ricci Curbastro 2019 Franciacorta Satèn Brut – 100% Chardonnay, aged for 40+ months
• Antia Fratta Essence 2019 Franciacorta Satèn Brut – 100% Chardonnay, aged for 30 months
• Barone Pizzini 2019 Franciacorta Rosé Extra Brut – 70% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay, aged for 30-40 months
• 1701 2019 Franciacorta Rosé Nature – 100% Pinot Noir, aged for 30 months, no residual sugar

Franciacorta is the Official Sparkling Wine Partner of the 76th Emmy Awards season and is enjoyed by guests at the 76th Performers Nominee Celebration on Friday, Sept. 13, 2024 at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Los Angeles. Photo by J. Emilio Flores/Invision for the Television Academy/AP Content Services

Food Pairing:

While many think of sparkling wines as special occasion wines, sparkling wine, specifically Franciacorta, pairs with number dishes. Try a Zero Dosage (dry) Franciacorta with pike fish with fresh fennel. Try Extra Brut with couscous with vegetables or a juicy burger with aged cheddar. And try Brut with fried fish tacos, shrimp dumplings, and lasagna with mushrooms and béchamel sauce. The elegant, delicate Franciacorta with soft flavor and complex aromatics is a wonderful pairing with any dish.

There is not enough Franciacorta produced to dominate the market. But if the Michelin and Emmy stars are drinking it, you should too!

Visit franciacorta.wine to learn more about the region and its initiatives.

Read the original story in Men’s Journal.