Winemaker Notes
Blend: 55% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Bianco, 20% Pinot Nero
Professional Ratings
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A masterpiece rendition from a warmer vintage, the 2005 Franciacorta Cuvee Annamaria Clementi Riserva is a carefully contemplated blend of 55% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Bianco and 20% Pinot Nero. Only made in the best vintages, it is the estate’s flagship wine. This beautiful sparkler puts forth a complex bouquet of sourdough, exotic spice, crushed white flowers, candied lemon and Golden Delicious apple. I just love this sparkler. What sets this wine apart is its enormous length. Sensations of fleshy fruit and acidic freshness last many long minutes.
-
Wine Spectator
Vibrant and well-meshed, this is elegant overall, with a hint of salinity underscoring the patisserie apple and pear fruit, toasted hazelnut and lemon parfait flavors. The lacy texture shows on the subtle and lightly spiced finish.
Ca' del Bosco is on the leading edge of the exciting new wave of Italian wine producers, making absolutely top-quality sparkling and still wines. Maurizio Zanella founded the winery in 1968, and dedicated himself to distinguishing the sparkling wines of Franciacorta. The winery owns more than 230 acres in the region, with vineyards planted to Chardonnay, Pinot Bianco, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Pinot Nero and other indigenous Franciacorta grapes. Ca' del Bosco's reputation for sparkling wines has been secured by the excellence of its cuvées.
Situated among the gentle hills of Brescia, south of Lake Iseo, the Franciacorta region of Lombardy and its neighboring towns were historically better known for their production of firearms than wine. Maurizio Zanella has changed all of that and his talents have placed Franciacorta on the map of quality Italian wine regions. Zanella has worked to ensure the word "Franciacorta" would indicate a specific type of sparkling wine from a specific region, and would not be confused with "methode champenoise" or "spumante." In 1995, his dream came true and the sparkling wine of Franciacorta was named a D.O.C.G. to be marketed as "Franciacorta." Since the new D.O.C.G. standards require a minimum of two years aging before release, the first Ca' del Bosco Franciacorta D.O.C.G. were released to the international market in 1997.
Representing the topmost expression of a Champagne house, a vintage Champagne is one made from the produce of a single, superior harvest year. Vintage Champagnes account for a mere 5% of total Champagne production and are produced about three times in a decade. Champagne is typically made as a blend of multiple years in order to preserve the house style; these will have non-vintage, or simply, NV on the label. The term, "vintage," as it applies to all wine, simply means a single harvest year.
Thanks to the renewal of the collaboration between the Italian Trade Agency (ITA) and Wine.com, 50 new wineries and distilleries have been selected as new suppliers to the Wine.com platform. Click here to learn more about this program.
Italian Wine
Named “Oenotria” by the ancient Greeks for its abundance of grapevines, Italy has always had a culture virtually inextricable from red, white and sparkling wines. Wine grapes grow in every region throughout Italy—a long and narrow boot-shaped peninsula extending into the Mediterranean.
Italian Wine Regions
Naturally, most Italian wine regions enjoy a Mediterranean climate and a notable coastline, if not coastline on all borders, as is the case with the islands of Sicily and Sardinia. The Alps in the northern Italian wine regions of Valle d'Aosta, Lombardy and Alto Adige create favorable conditions for cool-climate grape varieties. The Apennine Mountains, extending from Liguria in the north to Calabria in the south, affect climate, grape variety and harvest periods throughout. Considering the variable terrain and conditions, it is still safe to say that most high quality viticulture in Italy takes place on picturesque hillsides.
Italian Grape Varieties
Italy boasts more indigenous grape varieties than any other country—between 500 and 800, depending on whom you ask—and most Italian wine production relies upon these native grapes. In some Italian wine regions, international varieties have worked their way in, but are declining in popularity, especially as younger growers take interest in reviving local varieties. Most important are Sangiovese, reaching its greatest potential in Tuscany, as well as Nebbiolo, the prized grape of Piedmont, producing single varietal, age-worthy Piedmontese wines. Other important varieties include Corvina, Montepulciano, Barbera, Nero d’Avola and of course the white wines, Trebbiano, Verdicchio and Garganega. The list goes on.