• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Vindulge

BBQ and Grilling Recipes with Wine Pairings

  • Home
  • About
    • About Mary
    • Portfolio
    • TV Appearances
    • Work With Me
  • Cookbook
  • Wine
    • Food and Wine Pairing
  • All Recipes
  • Travel
  • Resources
    • Fundamentals For Learning How to Grill
    • Guide to Pellet Grills – Common Q and A
    • Best Pellet Grill – MAK Two Star General – Versatile American Made Pellet Smoker
    • Blogger Resources
  • Contact
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
menu icon
go to homepage
subscribe
search icon
Homepage link
  • Home
  • About
  • Shop Wines
  • Cookbook
  • All Recipes
  • Travel
  • Wine Guides
  • Blogging Resources
  • Connect with us!

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    You are here: Home » Wine » What is Prosecco? Your Prosecco Guide.

    What is Prosecco? Your Prosecco Guide.

    April 29, 2022 By Mary Leave a Comment

    Sharing is caring!

    0 shares
    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    Prosecco is a popular sparkling wine from Northern Italy, and a much less expensive sparkling option than Champagne.

    It often gets lumped into one category — fresh, fruity, and inexpensive sparkling wine. But if you’re willing to look a little deeper, there’s so much more to this delicious bubbly than it gets credit for. Let’s explore, or check out our guide on Italian Sparkling Wines from throughout the country.

    Prosecco Superiore DOCG
    Jump to:
    • Prosecco Wine Highlights
    • What is Prosecco?
    • Grapes Permitted
    • Method of Production
    • What does Prosecco Taste Like?
    • What’s the Difference between Prosecco and Champagne
    • Prosecco Superiore DOCG
    • Recipes to Pair with Prosecco

    Prosecco Wine Highlights

    • Explore the various representations of this incredible sparkling wine
    • There are various quality designations to know
    • It pairs amazingly well with foods

    What is Prosecco?

    Prosecco is a sparkling wine that comes from the Veneto region in Northern Italy (and also some parts of Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, also in Northern Italy), made primarily from Glera grapes. Almost all is produced in Italy and is sparkling or “spumante”.

    *As of 2020, the Consorzio di Tutela della Denominazione di Origine Controllata Prosecco (the consortium of producers) officially recognized Rosé Prosecco, which is made with Pinot Noir grapes (in addition to in addition to Glera grapes) left on the skin.

    Grapes Permitted

    Prosecco is made using the grape Glera (formerly referred to as Prosecco grapes) and must be made from at least 85% of this grape. Other permitted grapes that make up the remaining 15% include Bianchetta Trevigiana, Glera Lunga Verdiso, Perera, and international grapes Chardonnay, Pinot Bianco, and Pinot Grigio.

    White Wine Grapes
    A Glera grape cluster at harvest time.

    Method of Production

    Charmat Method (used in most Prosecco production)

    The most common method used to achieve bubbles is via the tank or Charmat Method. This is where the secondary fermentation happens inside a large tank. After primary fermentation, the yeast and sugars are added to the base wine in order to start secondary fermentation in a large tank (vs. in the bottle as in the Champagne method). The tank is sealed to prevent the CO2 from escaping, allowing for those bubbles we all love to develop. The wines are then filtered, given a dosage (added for level of sweetness), and bottled. These are generally not aged, and meant to be consumed young while fresh and fruity (with a few exceptions).

    What does Prosecco Taste Like?

    The wine takes on bright, fruity characteristics, often with flavors of honeysuckle, apples, pears, and signature floral notes. Most don’t age very long (but there are plenty of exceptions to this rule), therefore you’ll find fresh and bright vibrant fruit flavors. The bubbles will generally be bigger and more spritzy than Champagne. They can be incredibly fun and pleasurable to sip on.

    Of course, not all of it is made this way and not all is fresh and fruity. There are different quality tiers, from Prosecco DOC (the most common) to Prosecco Conegliano Valdobbiadene Superiore DOCG, and even smaller, more concentrated designations, which are among the highest quality within the region.

    prosecco pyramid
    Prosecco Quality Levels

    What’s the Difference between Prosecco and Champagne

    The biggest differences is location/region and methods of production. Champagne is a place, located in the Champagne region of Northeast France. Both Champagne and Prosecco are names protected by European law for wines made within those production regions. Learn more about the differences between Champagne and Prosecco here.

    Prosecco Superiore DOCG

    It often gets lumped into one category — fresh, fruity, and inexpensive sparkling wine made throughout the Veneto region of Italy. But if you’re willing to look a little deeper, there’s so much more to Prosecco than it gets credit for.

    Prosecco Superiore comes specifically from the hilly area of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene, which includes 15 towns located at the heart of the Veneto region, home of the highest quality DOCG wines of the region. Read more about Prosecco Superiore DOCG.

    Recipes to Pair with Prosecco

    Prosecco Rosé DOC was introduced by the Prosecco DOC Consortium as an official category in 2020.

    This amazing wine can pair with a wide variety of food. Some of our favorite recipes include:

    • Blackberry Aperol Spritz
    • The Ultimate Mimosa Bar
    • Grilled Pork Chops with Wine Brown Butter Sauce
    • Grilled Salmon with Orange Glaze
    • Spicy Sriracha Grilled Shrimp

    « What is Prosecco Superiore DOCG
    The Ultimate Smoker and Grill Buying Guide »

    Reader Interactions

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    Mary-Cressler-Sept-2015-smI'm Mary, a wine/food/travel writer, Certified Sommelier, mom of twins, former vegetarian turned BBQ fanatic, runner, and founder of Vindulge and author of Fire + Wine cookbook.  Thanks for stopping by!

    Learn More...

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Twitter

    Fire and Wine Cookbook Cover.

    Get Ready for Summer

    Smoked Brisket

    What’s on our Grill

    Pao de Queijo in a bowl

    Brazilian Cheese Bread – Pao de Queijo Recipe (Gluten Free)

    Smoked Mexican Shredded Beef Tacos on a platter

    Smoked Mexican Shredded Beef Tacos Recipe – With Crispy Tortillas

    The Best Gluten Free Drop Biscuits – 5 Ingredients

    Smoked Hot Honey Ribs Recipe

    More

    As Seen On

    Products we love

    taking the temperature of a porchetta roast on the grill
    We use Thermoworks Signals BBQ Alarm to monitor the internal temperature of the meat while it’s cooking, then double check with an instant read thermometer, like the Thermapen One.

    Vindulge Wine Club

    join the wine club side bar

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Accessibility Policy

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact
    • Portfolio
    • TV Appearances
    • Work with Me

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2021 Vindulge

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
    Cookie SettingsAccept All
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
    CookieDurationDescription
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
    viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
    Functional
    Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
    Performance
    Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
    Analytics
    Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
    Advertisement
    Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
    Others
    Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
    SAVE & ACCEPT
    0 shares