IT’S getting harder to make bad wines: This is what I tell wine lovers looking for lower-priced alternatives. We are full steam into the festive season and I have received many requests for recommendations on the wines readers should offer either at their office parties or homes. Pour Prosecco; it’s a very good choice as a “welcome wine” and it also can work throughout an entire evening.

Italy produces several sparkling wines, but not all bubbly wine from Italy is Prosecco. Depending on where they are from and how they are made, they go by different names. Least popular of the styles might be Fraciacorta. Asti was on top for years, but the new king of Italian bubbly is Prosecco.

WHAT EXACTLY IS PROSECCO?

Prosecco is a non-vintage sparkling wine made from a grape varietal Glera (once called Prosecco) and it is produced exclusively in the northern Italian region Veneto. The best Prosecco hails from Conegliano and Valdobbiadene, in the hills north of Treviso. Prosecco is made by the Charmat, or ‘tank method’, in which secondary fermentation (how the bubbles get into the wine) does not take place in individual bottles like Champagne, but in large steel tanks known as autoclaves, which keep the wine under pressure. The idea is to capture the fresh fruitiness of the grape.

Just a few years ago the Italian authorities made two changes to protect their historical and business interests: (1) They changed the name of the grape Prosecco to Glera and (2) the Conegliano-Valdobbiadene area that made Prosecco was upgraded from current DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata) and upgraded to DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita). Next, a much larger area around this would be classified as DOC, in other words giving greater legal protection to the growers and wine makers in the region. Imagine if you took the Prosecco grape and made wine with it and then sold it as Prosecco, now that cannot happen any longer.

GENERAL TASTE

While each producer will have their various nuanced taste profiles, generally Prosecco is low in alcohol. So it is light, aromatic, crispy and refreshing on the palate with flavours of yellow apple, pear, white peach, and apricot. For the very best Prosecco, look for those with either Prosecco di Conegliano Valdobbiadene or Colli Asolani (aka Asolo Prosecco) on the label.

HOW TO SERVE IT?

In its homeland, Prosecco is enjoyed as a wine for every occasion. Served chilled, Prosecco should be drunk as young as possible, although high-quality Prosecco may be aged for up to seven years.

Prosecco also works as a great substitute for Champagne in making cocktails, so make sure you keep reading Thursday Life for great wine cocktail recipes coming soon.

Christopher Reckord — Businessman, Entrepreneur & Wine Enthusiast. Send your questions and comments to creckord@gmail.com. Follow us on Twitter: @Reckord