Franciacorta wine is produced in a Lombardian region bearing the same name. The area is completely surrounded by varying shades of nature - to its north, there’s the Lake Iseo (Lago d’Iseo); to its south are Bergamo and Brescia, to its east are the morainic hills (formed by glaciers), and to its west is the Oglio River. Because of this, Franciacorta land has amazing soil content and extraordinary (but fortunate) climatic conditions, staying mild in the winter and pleasant in the summer.
There are different explanations of where the word ‘Franciacorta’ comes from. Some say it originates from the words ‘franca curte’ which means ‘free of taxes’. In the olden days, large properties belonging to Benedictine monks took up great parts of the area and were exempt from taxes. Others say ‘Franciacorta’ means ‘small France’, a name given to it in 744AD by Charlemagne, the King of France who apparently made frequent visits to the area.
Regardless of the exact origin of the name, Franciacorta has grown to be known as the producer of great quality sparkling wines, being the first Italian sparkling wine to receive a DOCG classification (meaning the wine is attested to be authentic and of the highest quality).
Although Franciacorta has been producing still red and white wines for a very long time, it was really its decision, 40 years ago, to start producing sparkling wines that catapulted its success and put it on the map.
The main wine grape used to produce sparkling Franciacorta is the white Chardonnay, with a small proportion of the white Pinot Bianco, the red Pinot Grigio or the red Pinot Nero grape.
The types of sparkling wines produced include: Franciacorta Extra Brut (the driest of the range), Franciacorta Brut (not as dry), Franciacorta Satèn (less sparkling, often made from 100% Chardonnay grape), and Franciacorta Rose (dry, contains a small amount of Pinot Nero grape for colour).
(img by: Kyle May)