** Some Proseccos I Tasted Over the Past few months ---

ONE --  The Date and Time: Tuesday October 11, 2022  10:30AM - 4PM
The Event: Milano Wine Week International Masterclass Program
The Venue: Aria Ristorante, 25 York Street
The Target Audience: sommeliers, wine agents, wine media
The Availability/Catalogue: There were two wineries involved, one with an Ontario agent – VALDO (Wine Online) and  MASSOTINA.
The Quote/Background: The first seminar was a web show presentation seminar from Italy, "From Veneto to Friuli: exploring different terroirs and wine styles" by VALDO winery (a Bolla company) with various speakers such as their chief winemaker Gianfranco Zanon and Matteo Bolla. The second seminar was a blind tasting of six MASOTTINA wines, in "Exploring Prosecco styles and terroir". It too was a web show, but with participation in Milan, London, New York and Toronto. Both seminars had simultaneous translations when needed. Cristina Mercuri with Filippo Bartolotta spoke on the wines, with emphasis on: Brut/Extra Dry is just a question of dosage and taste?
The Wines: The six Masottina Proseccos were two different samples (Brut and Extra Dry) of three wine levels: Rive di Ogliano, Contrada Granda, and Calmaggiore, all Glera. But with different terroirs

**** BEST -- Four Stars (91+ in Quality/Price Rating terms):
-Valdo Cuvee 1926 Prosecco Valdobbiadene DOCG Extra Dry  16g/L RS, 90Glera/10Chardonnay
-Valdo Elevantum Rose Prosecco DOC Brut 11.5g/L RS, 90Glera/10PinotNoir   [MY FAVE]
-Masottina Collezione RDO Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore Rive di Ogliano DOCG Levante Extra Dry Millesimato. 13.5g/L all Glera  [ANOTHER MY FAVE]
-Masottina Collezione Contrada Granda Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Brut 10g/L all Glera
-Masottina Collezione Contrada Granda Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Extra Dry 14g/L all Glera
-Masottina Collezione Calmaggiore Prosecco DOC Treviso Brut 10g/L all Glera

***1/2 BETTER -- Three and a Half Stars (88 – 90 in Quality/Price Rating terms):
-Valdo Amor Soli Prosecco Valdobbiadene DOCG Bio Brut 2021 10g/L RS, all Glera
-Valdo Tenuta La Maredana Prosecco DOC Brut  9g/L RS, 85Glera/15PinotNoir $21.99
-Valdo Prosecco Cuvee I Magredi Extra Dry DOC Extra Dry 15g/L RS, all Glera $18.99
-Masottina Collezione RDO Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore Rive di Ogliano DOCG Ponente Brut Millesimato. 6G/L all Glera
-Masottina Collezione Calmaggiore Prosecco DOC Treviso Extra Dry 14g/L all Glera

The Contact Person: Benedetta Marassi b.marassi@ice.it

TWO -- The Date and Time: Monday November 21, 2022   10:30A to noon
The Event: A tasting of Conegliano Valdobbiadene: the heart of Prosecco Superiore DOCG
The Venue: SIPS, Maud Street
The Target Audience: wine media and sommeliers (over two dozen in all)
The Availability/Catalogue: this was a masterclass of higher-end Prosecco wines. These wines were generally not yet available for sale in Ontario, except as specified.
The Quote/Background: Jennifer Huether, MS, was our speaker today, and she ran over the basics of what this Italian region was all about. The hills of CV are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. All of the wine made in this DOCG is white; 93% of the wine made here is sparkling. Two sub-regions produce the best Prosecco – Rive and Cartizze. The Martinotti Method (a variation of Charmat) is prescibed. While not every farmed area is organic, glyphosate has been totally banned and growers are moving toward a green sustainability. The overall top quality Proseccos come from these two regions of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene, both located between Venice and the Dolomites...and these are at the DOCG level. 105 million bottles are produced every year. Each bottle should have wine that is 85% Glera grape at a minimum, with 15% maximum allowable for other grapes such as pinot nero, chardonnay, and any of some four local varieties.
Pronunciation was basically straightforward:  val-doh-bee-ahhh-deh-ne
The Wines: There were 9 wines, and in general I really enjoyed the dryer ones. Each wine had about 11.5% ABV.

**** BEST -- Four Stars (91+ in Quality/Price Rating terms):
-L'Antica Quercia Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Brut Nature Sui Lieviti "A" 2020  [organic wine, on lees, bone dry at 0g/L residual sugar]
-Frassinelli Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Extra Brut Rive di Santa Maria di Feletto 2021 [1.5g/L residual sugar, modest finish]
-Canevel Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Brut Biologico Campofalco Monfalcon Vineyard 2021 [90% glera, 10% verdiso, extended Charmat storage]
-Bottega Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Extra Dry "Il Vino dei Poeti" [16-18 g/L RS, Noble Estates agency]
-Col Vetoraz Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Extra Dry [16g/L RS, finishes drier, savoury]

***1/2 BETTER -- Three and a Half Stars (88 – 90 in Quality/Price Rating terms):
-Sommariva Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Brut [9g/L RS, jes peachy with some lemon peel]
-Ruggeri Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Brut Quartese [9g/L RS]
-Perlage Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Extra Dry Col di Manza [16g/L RS]
-Marsuret Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Extra Dry Il Soller [16g/L RS]

The Contact Person:  lisa@androscom.com

Dean Tudor,  Prof Emeritus T'karonto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson) School of Journalism

Treasurer of Wine Writers' Circle of Canada http://www.deantudor.com
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