Winemaker Notes
Light ruby red colour with purple highlights, lively froth and persistent perlage. Vigorous, fragrant and aromatic perfume with evident scents of ripe red fruit and withered rose. Sweet, smooth, delicate, sparkling and suave with a lingering aromatic persistence. It pairs with strawberries, forest fruits and with dried fruit too, such as walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, pistachios and figs.
The most traditional pairing, with dessert at the end of a meal or in the middle of the afternoon, is with pastries and cakes, from Christmas panettone to jam tart. Braida Brachetto d’Acqui is perhaps the only wine in the world which is the perfect match for chocolate.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
A fragrant bouquet of violets, lilacs, and sweet pea gives way to ripe raspberries, red currants, and sour cherries. The palate delivers perfectly balanced sweetness with crunchy, tart mixed berries. This delightful sparkler shines alongside a mixed berry parfait or your favorite ice cream sundae.
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Made in a handful of wine regions across the globe, red sparkling wine ranges from delicately sweet to bone dry. While styles vary by region, red sparkling wine production methods are often the decision of the winemaker. For serving, cool red sparkling wine down to about 40F to 50F.
Set upon a backdrop of the visually stunning Alps, the enchanting and rolling hills of Piedmont are the source of some of the country’s longest-lived and most sought-after red wines. Vineyards cover a great majority of the land area—especially in Barolo—with the most prized sites at the top hilltops or on south-facing slopes where sunlight exposure is maximized. Piedmont has a continental climate with hot, humid summers leading to cold winters and precipitation year-round. The reliable autumnal fog provides a cooling effect, especially beneficial for Nebbiolo, Piedmont’s most prestigious variety.
In fact, Nebbiolo is named exactly for the arrival of this pre-harvest fog (called “nebbia” in Italian), which prolongs cluster hang time and allows full phenolic balance and ripeness. Harvest of Nebbiolo is last among Piedmont's wine varieties, occurring sometime in October. This grape is responsible for the exalted Piedmont wines of Barbaresco and Barolo, known for their ageability, firm tannins and hallmark aromas of tar and roses. Nebbiolo wines, despite their pale hue, pack a pleasing punch of flavor and structure; the best examples can require about a decade’s wait before they become approachable. Barbaresco tends to be more elegant in style while Barolo is more powerful. Across the Tanaro River, the Roero region, and farther north, the regions of Gattinara and Ghemme, also produce excellent quality Nebbiolo.
Easy-going Barbera is the most planted grape in Piedmont, beloved for its trademark high acidity, low tannin and juicy red fruit. Dolcetto, Piedmont’s other important red grape, is usually ready within a couple of years of release.
White wines, while less ubiquitous here, should not be missed. Key Piedmont wine varieties include Arneis, Cortese, Timorasso, Erbaluce and the sweet, charming Muscat, responsible for the brilliantly recognizable, Moscato d'Asti.