Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
today, Cosmo, is less aromatic and has a more
compact bunch. In the past there were an
almost endless list of other Prosecco biotypes,
which either were more common than they are
today or were erroneous synonyms. One such
grape was Prosecco di Piave: whether it was a
true Prosecco or not, it was characterized by
uneven fl owering and therefore low yields, and
so disappeared (or rather, was made to disap-
pear) quickly. In the
Ampelografi a italiana
(1887), another Prosecco variety appears: Pro-
secco dal Pecol Rosso (red stalked). Not to be
outdone, Zava (1901) indicates the existence of
a Proséco and a Proséco Piccolo. I am sure all
this may seem moot to some readers, but it is
actually a helpful reminder of just how diffi cult
the ampelographer's work is (not to mention
that of the wine lover who would just like to
know exactly what he or she may be drinking).
By 1913, the
Bollettino dell'Associazione Agraria
Friulana
listed a veritable Noah's ark of
Prosecco
varieties: Prosecco Tondo Bianco (also called
Proséco, Prosecco Balbi, Proseccon), Prosecco
Tenero Bianco (also called Proséco, Prosecco
Lungo, Prosecco Tenero), Prosecco Gentile
Bianco (also called Proséco, Prosecco Piccolo,
Prosecco del Pecol Rosso, Prosecco Schittolin,
and Prosecco Zentil, these last two names only
used around Asolo),
and
Prosecco Nero. Of
course, Friuli Venezia Giulia had its own popu-
lations of Prosecco subvarieties: Prosec,
Resecco, Glera Secca, Glera Grossa, and Glera
Rossa (Calò and Costacurta 2004). Many of
these were in fact Prosecco Lungo
.
Between the
end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the
twentieth centuries, the repeated vineyard
selections made by growers, scientists, and
wine producers from the existing populations
of Prosecco biotypes and varieties led to the
establishment of the two main Prosecco, rather
Glera, varieties we know today: Glera Tondo or
Glera (with its two main biotypes, Balbi and
Cosmo) and Glera Lungo.
Which brings us to the controversy about
the recent change of the variety's name from
Prosecco to Glera. Beginning in 2009, a series
of events led to a sizable increase in the size of
Italy's Prosecco DOC to include portions of
Friuli Venezia Giulia. In the course of that
extension, Prosecco di Conegliano-Valdobbia-
dene was raised to DOCG status, and Prosec-
co's name was changed to Glera. As we have
seen, Glera varieties were grown in Friuli Ven-
ezia Giulia, where the name was used as a syno-
nym for Prosecco; therefore, authorities wished
to differentiate the grape variety (Glera), which
can be grown anywhere, from the wine (pro-
secco), which in theory at least, is the expres-
sion of a specifi c place's
terroir,
history, and
tradition. However, cynics have cried foul,
viewing this decision as nothing more than a
protectionist attempt to safeguard the commer-
cial value of a local Italian product. Since “pros-
ecco” is now linked to a specifi c Denominazi-
one di Origine, producers elsewhere in the
world can no longer use it to label their spar-
kling wines. Understandably, many are not
happy with this turn of events; however, while
most Italian authorities and prosecco producers
say that commercial protectionism was not
their original intention, some will also mumble
that given the centuries of history that both the
wine and the grape can boast on Italian soil, it
hardly seemed fair that anyone anywhere could
suddenly start planting Prosecco vines and
then call their wine with that same name.
When you realize that a U.S. wine producer, for
example, advertises his sparkling wine as
“Prosecco-style” and that the wine is said to be
made with “Gewürztraminer, Riesling, Char-
donnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscat,” you can
understand why some might worry about indis-
criminate use of the word “Prosecco.” That
said, it's only honest to admit that many Ital-
ians also use the name “Prosecco” haphazardly,
and will ask the wine waiter or sommelier at
their favorite watering hole for a glass of “Pros-
ecco” or a “Prosecchino” and, perish the
thought, quite often any sparkling wine will do.
In any case, recent studies have helped
increase our understanding of Glera and its
relationships to other varieties. Crespan, Can-
cellier, Chies, Giannetto, Meneghetti, and Cos-
tacurta (2009) have shown that the majority of
