Banfi makes this in Piedmont, from a blend that is unusual for Italian sparkling wine: Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay rather than the usual glera or chardonnay alone. It is a Spumante Brut, which means the wine is fermented a second time to raise the bubbles and dosed dry, with only a small amount of sugar added after disgorging. The result is a sparkling wine built on aromatics rather than on yeast.
- Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, blended.
- Spumante Brut, dry, second fermentation in tank.
- From Piedmont, in Italy's north-west.
- Crisp tropical fruit, balanced effervescence.
How it is made
Spumante made this way goes through a second fermentation in a pressurised tank rather than in the bottle. The method is faster and keeps more of the grape's own aroma, which is the point here: Sauvignon Blanc brings its green, tropical edge, Chardonnay fills out the middle. Brut means the dosage stays low, so the wine finishes dry.
How it tastes
Crisp tropical fruit leads, with the fine, steady bead that tank fermentation gives. The two grapes pull in different directions and it works: one lifts, one rounds. Lighter and more aromatic than a Champagne built on the same Chardonnay.
Good to know
Most Italian sparkling wine is made from glera, the grape of Prosecco, or from Nebbiolo and Barbera in the traditional metodo classico of Piedmont and Lombardy. A Sauvignon Blanc base is rare in Italy and closer to the sparkling wines of the Loire and New Zealand.
Contains alcohol.
