Ecco Domani Prosecco
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Ecco Domani Prosecco is made with grapes from Treviso, in northeast Italy's originally delimited Prosecco area. The fruit for this vintage was primarily selected from hillside vineyards, where lower yields, well drained chalk and clay soils, and mild, stable temperatures translate to delicate grapes with elegant floral and fruit characteristics.
In 2013, northern Italy had a challenging growing season, and weather conditions were cooler than usual throughout the summer. Fortunately, we harvested the fruit for our Prosecco before the autumn rains arrived. The cooler growing season allowed us to craft a wine with more delicate fruit aromas and fresher acidity.
The grapes for this wine were gently crushed and pressed, and the juice was allowed to cold settle prior to fermentation in upright stainless steel tanks at an average temperature of 65°F. The still wine was aged on its lees prior to a brief secondary fermentation, which created a fizzy, refreshing character.
Young Italian winemaker Fabrizio Gatto and his colleagues scour Italy's premier growing regions for wines that express the best characteristics of their areas. Those wines are then fashioned into final blends and sent to Trento, Italy, where they are bottled in a state-of-the-art facility. The Ecco Domani wines that ultimately arrive in the U.S. exhibit the best of what Italy has to offer.
"By choosing the very best grapes from the finest regions of Italy, it is possible for us to craft exquisite wines with marvelous complexity. The intricate fruit flavors which result in the finished wines are unsurpassed, and marry well with a variety of superb cuisines," says Fabrizio Gatto.
Since the debut of Ecco Domani wines in 1996, it has become the leading premium Italian brand in the United States.
A term typically reserved for Champagne and Sparkling Wines, non-vintage or simply “NV” on a label indicates a blend of finished wines from different vintages (years of harvest). To make non-vintage Champagne, typically the current year’s harvest (in other words, the current vintage) forms the base of the blend. Finished wines from previous years, called “vins de reserve” are blended in at approximately 10-50% of the total volume in order to achieve the flavor, complexity, body and acidity for the desired house style. A tiny proportion of Champagnes are made from a single vintage.
There are also some very large production still wines that may not claim one particular vintage. This would be at the discretion of the winemaker’s goals for character of the final wine.
One of the world’s most popular and playful sparkling wines, Prosecco is a specialty of northeastern Italy, spanning nine provinces of the Veneto and Fruili-Venezia Giulia regions. A higher-quality version of Prosecco wine that must meet more stringent production requirements is known as Prosecco Superiore and must come from the more rugged terrain between the towns of Valdobiaddene and Conegliano. Prosecco can be produced as a still wine, a semi-sparkling wine (“frizzante”), or a fully sparkling wine (“spumante”)—the latter being the most common. While Prosecco wine is typically produced in a “brut” (dry) style, its fresh and fruity character makes it seem a bit sweeter than it actually is. “Extra dry” styles, incorporating higher levels of residual sugar, are quite popular, however.
Prosecco wine is made from the Glera grape, which was formerly and confusingly called Prosecco, these wines are notable for pleasant flavors of peach, pear, melon, green apple, and honeysuckle. Lower pressure during the carbonation process (also called the tank method) means that the bubbles are lighter and frothier than in Champagne or other traditional method sparkling wine, and less persistent. Prosecco is also a great choice to blend with orange juice for mimosas for a classic brunch beverage.