#curtefranca

Franciacorta’s Ca’ del Bosco: Icon of Italian Sparkling Wine

Yesterday was a gloriously sunny fall day. One of those echos of summer that puts you in a celebratory mood. And, happily for me, I was headed to lunch with the charming Giacomo Marzotto, a member of the wine powerhouse Marzotto family, in town to sing the praises of their Franciacorta estate. Ca’ del Bosco is one of the most renowned producers of Franciacorta sparkling wine. Over a lineup of both sparkling and still bottlings, Giacomo offered insight into the philosophy that has made Ca’ del Bosco a benchmark estate in Italy. Franciacorta in Context Franciacorta is a relatively young appellation, officially recognized in 1967 and elevated to DOCG status in 1995. In just a few decades, this Lombardy region has grown into Italy’s premier source of traditional-method sparkling wine, often compared to Champagne. With just under 3,000 hectares under vine and some 200 producers, Franciacorta remains small in scale but ambitious in quality. Chardonnay dominates plantings, with Pinot Noir and