Bellavista Franciacorta Rosé 2020
£37.95
The wine
Pale face-powder pink with a fine and persistent mousse, complemented by cherry blossom and hibiscus notes alongside pomegranate and small red berries with a hint of spice and pink pepper. Clean and lively on the palate, with great personality, tension and a long finish.
Franciacorta Rose requires at least 35 per cent Pinot Noir, vinified to draw colour from the skins. The moraine soils at the foot of the Alps, left by a retreating glacier, give drainage and mineral definition, and the altitude keeps acidity high, which is what a serious sparkling rose depends on.
The producer
Bellavista
View all Bellavista winesVittorio Moretti founded Bellavista in 1977 at Erbusco in the heart of Franciacorta, beginning with a few hectares and building to 207. The name translates as beautiful view.
Franciacorta is Italy's answer to Champagne and is made the same way: a second fermentation in the bottle, extended ageing on the lees, and the same grapes, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir with a little Pinot Bianco. The appellation's rules are in places stricter than Champagne's, requiring longer minimum lees ageing for its non-vintage wines, and the wines are made in far smaller quantity. The region sits at the foot of the Alps above Lake Iseo in Lombardy, where moraine soils left by a retreating glacier give the drainage and the minerality.
Bellavista is among the two or three names that made the appellation's reputation, and the range is deliberately expressive rather than austere, with generous lees ageing and a proportion of oak fermentation. The still Curtefranca whites come from the same estate under the region's table-wine appellation.
