Lambrusco agonistes?

24-Apr-11 - Yes, I know what you're thinking. Lambrusco? Semi-sweet, fizzy, screwtop nonsense and, yes, that's a good description of most of it. Indeed, one of my wine-writing colleagues, Nicholas Belfrage, wrote a book called Life Beyond Lambrusco  in 1985 to try to lay the ghost of this ghastly substance, and persuade people that there are fine wines to be found, even in Emilia-Romagna.

I knew, of course, that the Lambrusco they drink in Parma and Modena bears no resemblance to the cheap fizzy stuff we see over here but, sadly, the closest I've ever got to Emilia-Romagna is neighbouring Tuscany and, given the choice between Brunello, Vino Nobile and Chianti or Lambrusco... Well it wasn't worth the effort.

It seems, however, that I may have been wrong. I had an e-mail from one Filippo l'Astorino from Cantina della Volta in Bomparto (Modena) who wanted to send me a bottle of their Lambrusco di Modena Spumante Brut. Made from Lambrusco di Sorbara grapes, by the 'traditional' method (i.e. final fermentation in the bottle: what we used to call the méthode champenoise before Champagne forbade the use of the term, thereby depriving itself of the most flattering and prestigious free advertisement in the wine world). Winemaker Christian Bellei developed the wine himself, and believes that it's the ultimate expression of the Lambrusco grape.

Hmm, yes, well, I'll believe it when I see it. This was to take some time, as the courier (UPS) had not been trained in the art of ringing doorbells (see posts of 31-Mar-11 and 02-Apr-11) and left the sample at the house next door, which is being redeveloped and is occupied solely by builders, plumbers and other tradesmen. Needless to say we never saw it. A second bottle was luckier, however, and the driver on this occasion had obviously done the full doorbell-ringing diploma.

My normal practice with samples is to leave them for at least a week to settle, then - if they need chilling - 24 hours in the fridge before tasting. I then taste freshly opened, then four hours later, and with food if appropriate, and finally the following day, to see how wine develops in an opened bottle.

Jill is the sparkling-wine aficionado at The Eversley, and I tried to get her to taste it, but she showed little enthusiasm until, a few days later, the Cava ran out, and she agreed to give it a go. We were both, quite frankly, amazed. It has a beguiling purple mousse and an aroma of summer fruits, with a fresh acidity and lipsmacking fruit on the palate, whilst being bone dry - delicious, indeed, and worthy of 17/20 on the Radford scale. I don't think it's available in the UK but retails at about €13.50 in Italy, and is certainly the best red sparkler I've tried for a while - much more subtle than the Aussie sparkling Shiraz, for example, and a million miles ahead of 'Sparkling Red Burgundy' (do they still make that?). Lambrusco here is, unquestionably, enjoying a renascence.

A word of warning, however: that flirtatious thread of acidity which gives the wine its charm can become dominant once the fizz has gone, so do finish the wine within 48 hours of opening and don't leave it hanging about. Not that there's much danger of that when Jill's around.