EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT PROSECCO!
Written by: Diogo Pestana | Posted: 25 September 2018 | Modified: 12 November 2018
Oh, we do love a bottle of bubbly. Prosecco originates from the north of Italy in the region of Veneto- first formed in a small Italian village called Prosecco.
The bubbly liquid has been bottled and enjoyed since the ancient roman empire, we still enjoy it that much that the lovely British drunk 140 million bottles last year!
This versatile drink can be sipped on its own or used as a finishing touch to a cocktail, we want to educate you on the wonders of Prosecco history and how it is made. From grape to glass, we’ve got you covered.
What are the ingredients in Prosecco?
Prosecco can be made from a variety of grapes but the o.g of them all is the Glera grape. This grape makes up at least 85% of Prosecco to give the fruity, freshness that we all know and love. Yeast is a very important ingredient in the creation of Prosecco, this helps the fermentation process begin and form the bubbles.
How is Prosecco made?
Originally Prosecco was made by the alcoholic fermentation Prosecco which was because of the decrease in the temperatures inItaly. The uncertainty and riskiness of being weather reliant for the fermentation process to work, the Charmat method is now widely used.
1. Once the grapes are harvested, they are carefully pressed so only the free-run juices are extracted. This is known as the must.
2. The must is transferred into a large stainless-steel tank where it is cooled at 5-10’C for around 10-12 hours.
3. As the Glera grapes have lots of natural sugar within them, natural yeast is added to start the fermentation process. This is where the sugars create the alcohol content at 20’C for 15-20 days.
4. The producers of the Prosecco will mix other wines in with the liquid to perfect the desired taste, after this it will enter the second phase.
5. The still wine is pressurised in the tanks to create the bubbles of carbon dioxide, to get the right alcohol content (normally about 11-12%).
6. The yeast is removed and filtered to create the crystal-clear consistency we know and love.
What is the difference between Prosecco and Champagne?
Prosecco is different to Champagne because of the fermentation process, Prosecco is fermented in the large tanks – whereas champagne is in the bottle. This makes the process much cheaper and easy to produce in large quantities.