Cantina di Soliera Lambrusco Grasparossa di Castelvetro

This is a Lambrusco which absolutely lays to rest the horror stories from the ‘80s of sweet pop posing as wine.  Here is a delightfully fresh frizzante packed with cherry flavours and finished with a thoroughly grown-up mix of acidity and tannins.   The label tells us that this wine is “amabile”[1] which can translate as sweet, but for this Lambrusco that would be entirely wrong.  Instead I would chose the alternative translations of lovable or amiable – this is a joyful wine to share with friends.  It starts with a gentle pop and fizzes merrily but gently in the glass – this is not a gassy wine and is certainly not carbonated. The nose foretells its deep flavours and on the tongue it has body and is well structured with deep fruity flavours.

All this comes with just an 8% ABV, achieved with the winemaker’s art, red wine depth, the benefits of a bit of fizz and the Grasparossa DOC, the smallest Lambrusco denomination, well regarded for its quality and one to remember. A Grasparossa will typically be dry, full bodied, deep red, tannic and come with a lower ABV.  Red wine drinkers should enjoy this.

[1] – Italian wines can be graded as Secco (dry), Amabile (off-dry) and Dolce (sweet)