Sangiovese, Prosecco and Puccini

With closed eyes, soft lips and a voice that seems to wash over a person hypnotically, Andrea Bocelli brings a sensuality – in the truest sense of the word — to his singing that could turn anyone into an ardent opera fan. His gentle, seemingly effortless voice touches all senses, capable of sending a quiver up the spine and awakening the soul. So, it shouldn’t be too much of a surprise that for literally hundreds of years, his family has also been awakening senses and souls with their luscious Tuscan wines. This month, Hinsdale’s Inspired Wine Club members get to experience just such delights with two Bocelli wines:  a sparkling Prosecco that is light and bright enough to make any day a special occasion; and a brilliantly red Sangiovese that is Tuscany’s heart and soul.

Bocelli Prosecco – Extra Dry

Long before Andrea Bocelli was famous for music, his family was known for its wine. On their Tuscan farm, they have nurtured Prosecco grapes indigenous to their Veneto region and created a sparkling wine with delicate grace, focusing on a low yield that helps concentrate the fragrance and flavor. In fact, each plant produces but one bottle of this playful wine that possesses a fresh peachiness laced with minerality due to its classic moraine soil. The delicate, yet persistent perlage tickles the throat, providing a quaffable festive spring treat that is perfect for shrimp cocktail, oysters or even spicy Thai noodles.

Rosso Toscana Sangiovese IGT

The backbone to Tuscan wine undoubtedly lies in the Sangiovese grape, known best for the acidic fruitiness it brings to Chianti. And in this wine made from 100% Sangiovese, the Bocelli brothers have hand-harvested grapes from another unusually low-yield vineyard that produces no more than one and a half bottles of wine per plant.  The terroir of river stone and hunks of quartz give the feeling that this gem of a wine is like finding a diamond in the rough.  It is a lush, dark ruby wine that brings forth acidic fruitiness of berries, cherries, rhubarb and cranberry with a marvelous mineral earthiness. The earthy loam scent leads into a well-balanced, full wine meant for penne with farmer’s market Roma tomatoes, basil and Buffalo mozzarella, a charcoal-grilled steak, or a simple plate of aged Parmesan.