A Taste of 21st Century Lambrusco; Paltrinieri Lambrusco di Sorbara Radice #ItalianFWT

Easy to drink, food-friendly, and affordable, Lambrusco is fast becoming the fashionable wine of those in the know, and can be found on wine lists from Brooklyn to Seoul. If you’ve been holding out, now is the time to give Lambrusco a second chance.

Rebecca Winke

The theme for this months Italian Food, Wine and Travel (#ItalianFWT) group of food and wine bloggers is Italian Sparkling Wines for the Holidays.

I’m sharing a 21st century Lambrusco that is the antithesis of 20th Century candied, fizzy, very commercial Lambrusco sold by the millions of cases annually here in the United States in the 1970s and ’80s (and popularized by commercials like this).

I don’t think of 21st century Lambrusco as a comeback or rebirth of Lambrusco, because dry, clean, not-quite-sparkling, easy-drinking wines crafted from select grapes, and offered at reasonable prices were made well before, during and certainly after the 20th century version that so badly damaged its reputation.

About Lambrusco

For the uninitiated,  Lambrusco, which hails from the Emilia Romagna (arguably the gastronomic capital of Italy) region of Italy. It is a family of indigenous red grapes varieties that are commonly used to make a sparkling red wine of the same name. There are at least 10 varieties of Lambrusco, and five have their own DOC. 

Lambrusco di Sorbara is a DOC established in 1970 for rosé and red sparkling wines. The sparkling wine may be frizzante (fizzy) and spumante (sparkling) forms, and in various levels of sweetness. They feature a specific clone of the Lambrusco red wine grape variety, named after the village of Sorbara. The wines may undergo second fermentation either in bottle or in pressurized tanks.

The Lambrusco di Sorbara grape’s most distinctive feature is its flowering anomaly. The vine drops its flowers, reducing yields (in some years more than 30 percent). This results in the grapes having more concentrated flavors, so what it lacks in quantity is easily made up in quality explains WineSearcher.com

2019 Paltrinieri Lambrusco di Sorbara Radice

This wine is 100% Lambrusco di Sorbara made in the “Metodo Ancestrale” where the secondary fermentation take place in the bottle rather than the Martinotti (tank) method common with Lambrusco production.

It pours a slightly cloudy salmon pink color with ripe wild strawberry, raspberry, citrus blossom, ruby grapefruit, chalk and baked pastry aromas. On the palate, it’s frizzante, and dry with mouth-watering acidity with enticing wild strawberry, crushed raspberry, nectarine, ruby grapefruit, and a hint of tangerine flavors accented with a very appealing saline minerality. While it looks a Rosé, it’s actually a red wine! 11.5% abv| SRP – $20. Most definitely in the conversation for the best Lambrusco I’ve ever had. Will buy more! Sealed under crown cap.

I’m a fan of pairing Lambrusco with wood-fired pizza This was fantastic paired with a delectable Guantonio’s”Falco” pizza of house made sausage, breadcrumbs, basil, chili flake, red onion & fresh mozzarella + wood fired squash with Kabocha, lentils, mushrooms, pecorino, brown butter vinaigrette, crunchy seeds & grains.

I’m recommending it for your holiday table because I think it’s a thought-provoking, dry, food friendly, appetizing refreshing wine. It’s festive color is a nice bonus.

About Paltrinieri

The Paltrinieri family has been producing Lambrusco in what is the Lambrusco di Sorbara DOC for four generations  They were the first to produce a 100% Lambrusco di Sorbara in 1998.

Related posts you might enjoy: A Distinctive Duo Of Italian Sparkling Wines which features another of my favorite Lambrusco: Fattoria Moretto Lambrusco Grasparossa di Castelvetro Secco

Be sure to check out the diverse selection of Italian Sparkling Wines my fellow #ItalianFWT food and wine bloggers discovered for this holiday season:

If you’re up early enough, please join us over on Twitter on Saturday, December 5th at 8a PST/11a EST. We’ll be chatting about an amazing array of Italian sparkling wines for your holiday table. Just follow the #ItalianFWT hashtag.

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15 Comments

  1. culinarycam says:

    This was definitely a conversation-starting wine. I’m SO glad you joined us with this pairing for December’s #ItalianFWT. Cin cin, Martin!

  2. joyofwine says:

    I Love lambrusco, and I love Alberto & Barbara Paltrinieri! They are such lovely people and totally passionate about di Sorbara, and this Radice is outstanding! I bet it was magical with the pizza! Thanks for posting!

    1. Martin D. Redmond says:

      Thanks Joy! I think it’s so cool that you know the Paltrinieri’s. It good to know you’re a fan!

  3. advinetures says:

    We were sorry we couldn’t join the conversation…we don’t drink near enough Lambrusco and we’re seeing it more and more. Time to brush up on this wine!

  4. Lynn says:

    Lambrusco is under rated and under appreciated! Super seeing it here, your intro discussion is great. I wasn’t able to access the commercial but I’ve seen a few. When I was a kid I remember my dad sharing he didn’t like Lambrusco because it was cany-like- that comment stayed with me until I began studying wines. Unfortunately in Bordeaux we only have the “…candied, fizzy, very commercial Lambrusco sold by the millions…” Thank gosh for being able to order.

    Great idea- imagine those wood fired flavors play very nicely with Lambrusco. Holiday cheers to you both!

    1. Martin D. Redmond says:

      Thanks for the heads up on the link Lynn! A shame you only has access to the fizzy commercial Lambrusco in Bordeaux, but not a surprise. I do hope you get a chance to try nice Secco Lambrusco soon!

  5. robincgc says:

    I love getting to learn about all these sparkling wines. I have such trouble exploring Lambrusco as it’s very hard to find locally. This bottle looks so different from the Lambruscos I have seen. Thank you for sharing all the details on the wine, the variety and the winery.
    Oh and can you ask your pizza joint to open a location down the street from me?

  6. Nicole Ruiz Hudson says:

    I love this Lambrusco! And you’ve described it so well, I’m now craving a bottle with pizza!

    1. Martin D. Redmond says:

      Thanks so much Nicole. I hope you get a chance to grab a bottle and a pizza soon!

  7. Lambrusco and wood-fired pizza sound perfect for the holidays – this year or any year!

    1. Martin D. Redmond says:

      Thanks Linda! It’s a wonderful pairing!

  8. Payal Vora says:

    My first Lambrusco was undrinkable and swill-esque, to put it mildly. It was also at a college party so… Regardless, it’s time to have more Lambrusco and more grown-up Lambrusco! Great post as always!

    1. WordPress.com Support says:

      Thanks for the kind words Payal. And, yes…you’re overdue for a Lambrusco do over!😉

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