Prosecco rose’ is coming

If you haven't heard or read it yet, Prosecco rose’ will be soon making its appearance on our supermarkets shelves, and not, and I am certain, many wine drinkers can’t wait to buy it. Prosecco rose’ is not to be confused with any sparkling rose’ wine currently being sold, Prosecco rose’ will have written “Prosecco rose’” on the label and I am expecting it to be a DOC wine.

While the Prosecco Consortium can’t wait to spread the Prosecco brand further, I don’t think it will generate the sales they are forecasting, the news leaves me unconcerned. Until now, and it will be at least until the 20/21 vintage, Prosecco could only be white. Glera, the grape that produces Prosecco, is a white grape and can only make white sparkling wines, to make Prosecco rose’ Pinot nero and Raboso, two red grapes grown in abundance in the Prosecco region, will need to be used.

However, all Prosecco producers are already making at least one sparkling rose’ wine, they are just not calling it Prosecco. As soon as the Consortium decision will become law, the word “rose’” will be allowed to be in the label next to the word “Prosecco” and all producers will rename their wines Prosecco rose’, making sure that the blend follows the wine “disciplinare”, regulation.

Will the creation and arrival of Prosecco rose’ have any impact on sales, influencing consumers’ purchasing decision? Yes, it will, this is the only reason Prosecco’s producers have been fighting for the appellation. Anything sparkling, and rose’, is a hot seller at the moment and possibly the only real threat to Prosecco, brand implosion apart, and the Prosecco Consortium could not ignore it while wanting a share of it at the same time.

Currently each producer, sparkling rose wines are made all over the world not just Italy or the Prosecco region, uses a different, unique name and different grapes, almost any red grape can be made into a sparkling rose’ wine, creating thousands and more sparkling rose’ wines with different flavours and styles, some light, some very fruity, some produced according to the Martinotti method, also known as Charmat, the so called “spumante” in Italy, some produced according to the Traditional method, same as Champagne or Franciacorta, and most of this information are not written on the label, leaving wine drinkers very confused.

By creating the Prosecco rose’, Prosecco producers will create a style, more than a wine, more or less consistent across producers so that consumers, when choosing a bottle of Prosecco rose’ instead of any other sparkling rose’ wine, they will have chosen a wine they are familiar with. This is nothing new, it is already happening, many of us, when drinking or eating out ask for a “Prosecco rose’” when ordering a sparkling rose’ wine despite the wine not existing yet, meaning a light, fruity sparkling rose’ wine and many establishments give us their sparkling rose’ wine without informing us which wine we are actually being served.

With the creation of the Prosecco rose’ appellation, not only the wine will appear on restaurants’ wine lists around the world, but the biggest revolution will come from retails sales, supermarkets and shops, where consumers will be finally able to buy a bottle of Prosecco rose’ with the consequence that many of the other sparkling rose’ wines currently being sold will disappear and their producers will need to find a different use for the grapes.

The Prosecco consortium is forecasting sales of 75m bottle, a huge number, too many for me, sales that will be taken away from other sparkling rose’ wines and Prosecco itself, Prosecco rose’ will certainly erode the normal Prosecco’s sales. The wine will probably be a commercial success, there will be good and bad, cheap and expensive, no difference from the normal Prosecco, but the question is whether Prosecco rose’ will help the revival of the Prosecco brand or dilute it even more, and I strongly believe the latter.

Whether we will be stocking any Prosecco rose or not will depend on their quality, meanwhile, if you are looking for a good rose’ bubble, check our sparkling range that include some great rose’.