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Winner Details

Prosecco

2017 Gold: 3 Silver: 5 Bronze: 4 Commended: 7
2016 Gold: 2 Silver: 5 Bronze: 3 Commended: 8

Somms might roll their eyes at mention of the P word, but it remains a cash cow: heavily in growth, and a brand in its own right. Its medal count at the Sommelier Wine Awards has been solid for three years now, and on this evidence, once again, the sweet spot is around the £9-£10 mark. So if you must sell cheap and cheerful, it’s probably also well worth putting a range of wines on the list to trade up the more engaged consumer.

Well done to Soligo, by the way, whose Extra Dry Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore picked up Gold for the second year running.

FROM THE TASTING TEAMS

 ‘Prosecco is not going to disappear – it’s going to pull more market share through delivering decent products at a good price.’ Andre Luis Martins, Cavalry & Guards Club 

‘We took prosecco from the list so that we could sell more of other sparkling wines’ Federico Forte, Plateau

‘The popularity of prosecco is showing no signs of slowing. Producers need to be able to cope with the demand.’ Fred Marti, Typing Room

‘Prosecco is a cash cow on wine lists. That’s why you should always introduce a higher-end option to trade people up.’ Martin Lam, team leader

‘Couples will usually ask for champagne but for a group of people it’s prosecco. People say “What prosecco do you have?” which is quite a new thing.’ Giancarlo Cuccuru, The Ned Hotel

‘More producers are making prosecco in a dry style now, so it’s easier to find that minerality.’ Matthieu Longuère MS, Le Cordon Bleu London

Award winners

Found 19 wines

Sparkling: Prosecco

San Simone, Il Concerto, Prosecco Spumante, Brut -1, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy

Gold medal winner

This prosecco, praised for its ‘popular’ style by team leader Sarah Jane Evans MW, took Gold, she explained, for its ‘clean, green apple freshness and light, fun fizz with a tangerine finish’. Carlos Ferreira of The Sign of the Don appreciated its ‘complexity on nose and palate, with vanilla and green fruit’, while Michael Moore of The London Cookhouse found it ‘enjoyable drinking wine, that would be great with ginger prawns’.

£9.95 Eurowines

Soligo, Col de Mez, Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore, Extra Dry -1, Veneto, Italy

Gold medal winner

This extra-dry prosecco took Gold not only for its fine balance and complex fruit, but for displaying some excellent value for money, too. It had notes of ‘bergamot and pear, as well as some candied apple’, according to Quentin Loisel of Restaurant Sat Bains with Rooms, while team leader Lionel Periner found ‘fresh lime and nice exotic fruit, making this a good match for pear with saffron mousse’.

£9.67 Eurowines

Lino Ballancin, Conegliano-Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore, Extra Dry 2016, Veneto, Italy

Gold medal winner

Matthieu Longuère MS of Le Cordon Bleu London was impressed by this prosecco’s ‘peach, perfumed, floral aromas’, adding that the palate was ‘really creamy and fresh, quite juicy and ripe with a lovely finish’, while team leader Jade Koch noted its ‘well-balanced sweetness and minerality, as well as apple fruit on the finish, making it very drinkable’. ‘Its stone fruit and good acidity make this a match for fresh fish dishes,’ suggested Carlos Ferreira of The Sign of the Don.

£12.80 Vinicola Tombacco srl

Ruggeri, Giustino B, Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore 2015, Veneto, Italy

Silver medal winner

Laure Patry of Jason Atherton Group enjoyed its ‘light sweetness and fragrant character with elegant bubbles’, finding it ‘well balanced, with acidity and some creaminess on the finish – good value’. ‘Baked apple, apricot, almond notes and off-dry style,’ added Cristian Sanchez of Hotel du Vin Cambridge.

£15.88 Enotria&Coe

Botter, Di Maria, Prosecco -1, Veneto, Italy

Silver medal winner

Richard Brooks of Caroline Catering found it ‘clean, fresh and lively, holding well in the mouth, in a style that’s easy-drinking and generally attractive, representing decent value’. A good, light summer party wine, he added, ‘with an appealing touch of sweetness’.

£5.99 CellarVino

47 Anno Domini, Vino Spumante, Prosecco, Extra Dry Millesimato 2015, Veneto, Italy

Silver medal winner

‘Light aromas, with some floral and citrus character, leading to a dry palate with a chalky, mineral finish,’ said team leader Lionel Periner of this prosecco. ‘Delicate, with some white flowers,’ added Quentin Loisel of Restaurant Sat Bains with Rooms.

£12.25 Vinicola Tombacco srl

Paolo Zucchetto, Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore, Extra Dry 2016, Veneto, Italy

Silver medal winner

‘Ripe apple, pear and white peach on the nose,’ began Cristian Sanchez of Hotel du Vin Cambridge, who also noted ‘some intensity, complexity on the palate with notes of elderflower and a long finish’.

£12.67 Wine Traders

Botter, Vivoli, Prosecco -1, North East Italy, Italy

Silver medal winner

Gergely Barsi Szabó of Sager + Wilde found ‘good fresh fruit on the nose, apples in particular, with a floral note, too, leading to a rich palate’, while team leader Lionel Periner enjoyed its ‘good structure, and a well-balanced, citrus finish’.

£10.26 Molson Coors

Contarini, Moinet, Prosecco Extra Dry -1, Veneto, Italy

Bronze medal winner

‘A good, easy style,’ began Charles Ashby-Taylor of Dabbous, who highlighted its ‘pear drop aromas and hints of Sicilian lemon on the palate’, while Giancarlo Cuccuru of The Ned Hotel found it ‘slightly sweet on the palate, with frothy texture and strong notes of peach’.

£7.25 Fuller's

Botter, Corte Alta, Prosecco -1, Veneto, Italy

Bronze medal winner

Fresh and fruity, this prosecco was described by Carlos Ferreira of The Sign of the Don as having ‘tropical fruit on both nose and palate, as well as green apple and lime’. Quentin Loisel of Restaurant Sat Bains with Rooms agreed, describing it as ‘an exotic fruit salad’.

£6.90 Majestic Commercial

Bisol, Crede, Valdobbiadene Prosecco 2015, Veneto, Italy

Bronze medal winner

‘A drier style with a good, breezy mid-palate, pretty, with a hint of salinity and nice floral notes,’ said team leader Jade Koch, with Matthieu Longuère MS of Le Cordon Bleu London adding: ‘Quite mineral and fresh, juicy and a little yeasty, and well priced too.’

£13.96 Bibendum

Montresor, Prosecco Extra Dry -1, Veneto, Italy

Bronze medal winner

‘Good nose with a little yeast present, and fruity on the palate with brioche notes, complex and balanced,’ said Federico Forte of Plateau, while team leader Sarah Jane Evans MW noted: ‘aromatic, boldly floral with raspberry notes’.

£7.95 Boutinot

Carpenè Malvolti, 1868, Cartizze, Prosecco di Conegliano, Cuvée Extra Dry -1, Veneto , Italy

Commended medal winner

Soligo, Prosecco Treviso, Extra Dry -1, Veneto , Italy

Commended medal winner

£7.87 Eurowines

Ruggeri, Quartese, Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore -1, Veneto , Italy

Commended medal winner

£11.55 Enotria&Coe

Canevel, Valdobbiadene Spumante, Extra Dry 2016, Veneto, Italy

Commended medal winner

£12.37 VinumTerra

La Tordera, Saomí, Prosecco 2015, Veneto, Italy

Commended medal winner

£7.60 Fuller's

Ca' di Alte, Prosecco Spumante, Extra Dry -1, Veneto, Italy

Commended medal winner

£9.96 Liberty Wines

Paolo Zucchetto, Bottle Fermented, Valdobbiadene Prosecco 2015, Veneto, Italy

Commended medal winner

£11.78 Wine Traders