If recent summer wine sales indicate anything, people love rosé and bubbly wine. Well, great news: Italy just approved the production of rosé prosecco for the first time ever.
But I’ve had bubbly rosé before, you think. True, pink sparkling wine is nothing new, but what you had was probably sparkling rosé or rosé Champagne. Prosecco is strictly protected by a DOC, a controlled designation of origin, which specifies exactly what can be bottled and sold as prosecco based on the grapes used and the region in which it was made. That meant at least 85 percent white Glera grapes and no pink versions, until now.
With an updated set of rules, the DOC will now permit rosé prosecco to be made with 10 to 15 percent pinot noir grapes, which are typically used to make (surprise) pinot noir, a red wine. Other specifications for the new vino? It should have a “persistent foam,” can range from brut nature (bone dry) to extra dry (which is on the sweeter side) and 85 percent of the grapes must have been harvested that year. Oh, and it has to be pink (duh).
You won’t see rosé prosecco any time this year, because the new laws designate that sales will be allowed beginning January 1 after the harvest—that means January 2021. But once it hits shelves, we have a feeling it will be very popular. What’s not to like?
