Some month ago, I received a nice gift from the Consorzio Vini Asolo Montello. It was two bottles of their Asolo Prosecco Superiore DOCG as part of a project initiated by the younger producers within the consortium.
Now, I am far from an expert on Prosecco so, of course, I called on the prosecco knowledge of my Veneto-born friend Nadia. The two bottles turned out to be perfect for the aperitivo on two separate occasions with a group of our friends.
Some of you, just like me, might like prosecco a lot but not know much about all the different consortiums, denominations, production areas, etc. I mean who does not know about Cartizze and the Conegliano Valdobbiadene Superiore DOCG. And we have all heard of Asolo Prosecco Superiore DOCG, however, I must confess I felt a bit ignorant for the rest when I started opening these bottles.
Let’s Find out more about Vini Asolo Montello
History
Where are these wines produced then? Well, we are in Veneto and more precisely on the Asolo hills that are located just by Mount Grappa in the province of Treviso. This is an area in the middle of Prosecco land in Veneto, close to the district of Conegliano Valdobbiadene Superiore DOCG.
This is a viticultural area with a long history and winemaking tradition dating to the era of the Roman Empire and perhaps further beyond. I was later on on during the Middle Ages that this area would become even more important for wine production. It is said that it was the local monasteries with mainly Benedictine monks that developed the art of vine growing and winemaking turning into centers for agricultural studies and techniques.
When the area came under the domination of the Republic of Venice, it turned into a wine production hub that delivered high-quality wines to be sold in Venice and beyond. The Asolo Montello wines continued to be very much appreciated by the nobility and upper classes within the Republic of Venice for centuries. Today, the Asolo Montello wines are sold all over the world. The Asolo Prosecco Superiore got its DOCG denomination in 2009 and the Montello Rosso wine in 2011.
Territory
The Vini Asolo Montello area comprises 22,000 hectares of land that includes both hilly and more flat areas. The soil type varies between the more rocky and compact hills and the marl and loam on the flatlands. This, together with the mild climate, makes the area suitable for vine growing. The grapes that are grown within the consortium are mainly Glera, Bianchetta, Incrocio Manzoni bianco, Pinot bianco, and Chardonnay on the hills followed by Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Carmenère, and Recantina (a lesser known variety) on the plains.
Bianchetta and Recantina are grapes I will surely come back to write more about later in future articles. In this context, the Glera is the grape with a big G.
Glera
Some researchers claim that the Glera grape originates from the Carso Triestino area in Friuli Venezia Giulia and was then brought to the Treviso area in Veneto, while others say the opposite that the Glera grape has its origin on the Colli Euganei in Veneto.
If we step away from the birthplace debate, this grape variety has an interesting history. It is considered to have been a very highly esteemed and liked grape during the Roman Empire period. Then others say that it cannot be proved that Glera was used to make the pucinum wine that the Romans enjoyed so much.
The first written records of the word Prosecco (which used to be the name of the Glera grape until recently) dates to the mid-18th century. Further on in the 19th century, it was a focus for study at the newly founded Società Enologica Trevigiana. In that period, it was not widely grown in the area because of its sensitivity to vine diseases.
The traditional Prosecco used to be made with 1/3 Glera, 1/3 Bianchetta Trevigiana, and 1/3 Verdiso. Today, according to the regulation, Prosecco wine needs to contain 85% Glera and can then include up to 15% of any of the grapes Bianchetta Trevigiana, Verdiso, Perera, and Glera lunga.
Aperitivo with Asolo Prosecco Superiore DOCG
The first of the two bottles I received, I opened together with Nadia at an aperitivo at her place. It was the Asolo Prosecco Superiore DOCG Brut 2016. We liked it a lot with its fresh, smooth and almost velvety taste. We both agreed that it did not feel like a “Brut”, not having that grip, but rather as a “Satén” if we had been talking Franciacorta lingo here.
Nadia finished the bottle the day after at lunch and told me that it was even better then and paired with food. She said that the aromas came out in a more beautiful way.
Some week later, again at Nadia’s place, we met for a dinner among sommelier friends and I opened the second bottle, Asolo Prosecco Superiore DOCG Brut 2015, then. We shared it for aperitivo again paired with some light snacks. We found also this one fresh and velvety with notes of apple, pear, white flowers, and orange blossom. It also had a hint of mint in the background. A very enjoyable Prosecco wine.
Learning about Prosecco while tasting
There are always new things to learn about wine and while having the opportunity to taste these two samples of Asolo Prosecco Superiore DOCG, I learned a #shitton about the denomination at the same time.
Thanks to the Consorzio Vini Asolo Montello I had fun tasting and discussing Prosecco with friends and pushed myself to read up on the Asolo Montello wines. As I mentioned in the beginning, I knew about these wines in wider terms but I actually was fairly ignorant about the more detailed facts about the denomination.
A good way to learn more about wine, right? Cheers!
Sources: Consorzio Vini Asolo Montello
