IN BREVE
- Classese is the new consortium brand that highlights Pinot Nero in the DOCG regulations, with a minimum percentage of 85%.
- The Oltrepò Pavese Wine Protection Consortium celebrates the bond between Pinot Nero and Oltrepò, focusing on quality and excellence of the Classic Method.
- Francesca Seralvo emphasized that Oltrepò will be the only denomination in the world to give such importance to Pinot Nero.
- The Consortium celebrated 160 years of Italian Blanc de Noirs with a tasting of over 100 labels and special events.
- Among the wines presented: Nature La Piotta, Torre Degli Alberi Cruasè, Cordero San Giorgio, Calatroni Poggio Dei Duca, and Frecciarossa, all Classic Method symbols of Oltrepò.
Which consortium brand for sparkling wine gives such importance to Pinot Nero worldwide that it includes it in the DOCG regulations at a minimum percentage of 85%? Hint: it’s not Champagne, it’s not Franciacorta. It is—or rather, will be, once the bureaucratic process is complete—Classese, the DOCG Classic Method sparkling wine of the Oltrepò Pavese Wine Protection Consortium.
The Consortium president, Francesca Seralvo, strongly emphasized the connection between Pinot Nero and Oltrepò during the event “Oltrepò, land of Pinot Nero” in the historic village of Golferenzo. “We will be the only denomination in the world to focus on Pinot Nero so much as to make it the protagonist, almost 100%, in our regulations,” she said at the conclusion of the tasting with the 29 wineries involved.
- Classese in the new Oltrepò Consortium brand
- Oltrepò, a turning point: Classic Method Classese and more weight for growers in the Consortium
- Denny De Vito and Oltrepò’s Classese: Pavese Classic Method at the cinema
“We want to be recognizable for our Blanc de Noirs and distinguish ourselves for this, as well as giving great importance to the Classese name, which will allow us to differentiate the Classic Method from other Oltrepò denominations. Our future? It will be built on dialogue and sharing, with all the realities—small and large—of the Consortium.”
To get to know the territory’s Pinot Nero even better, the Consortium celebrated 160 years of Italian Blanc de Noirs—vinified for the first time 160 years ago, in 1865, in Rocca de’ Giorgi, by Counts Carlo Gancia and Augusto Giorgi di Vistarino—with a tasting of over 100 labels from 29 producers in Golferenzo, plus a blind tasting of 42 Classic Method wines (with an easter egg: a Bollinger hidden among the labels).
best CLASSESE DOCG: FIVE LABELS NOT TO MISS
- Nature La Piotta – Oltrepò Pavese DOCG Classic Method Pinot Nero Dosaggio Zero
A delicate, ethereal bubble opens the dance of this dosaggio zero Classic Method that spends more than two years—precisely, 30 months—on noble yeasts. The grapes are hand-harvested and subjected to gentle pressing before fermentation at strictly controlled temperature. The noble yeast is fully present: it leaves a memory of bread with walnuts, which softens an already decidedly pleasant acidity gifted by the calcareous and stony soil, rich in the “piote” (stones) that give the winery its name.
- Torre Degli Alberi Cruasè – Oltrepò Pavese DOCG Classic Method Pinot Nero Rosé Brut 2020
The Pinot Nero grapes that give life to this brilliant and tempestuous Cruasé are born in the high hills of Ruino. The 40 months of aging and an expert hand—recognizable also in the other Classic Method wines from Torre degli Alberi winery—bring tumultuous elegance to the glass, a scent of May roses and fleshy fruits. There’s a beautiful story of courage and freedom to discover behind this winery, owned—like the 14th-century tower that embraces the clover-green hills with its gaze—by the noble Dal Verme family: revealing it in a few lines would not do it justice.
- Cordero San Giorgio – Oltrepò Pavese DOCG Classic Method Millesimato 2021
At the San Giorgio estate there’s also a crenellated tower, dominating 22 hectares—of which approximately 20 are old vines, with an average age of 35 years—cultivated with sustainable and low environmental impact methods. In this context, and under the aegis of Saint George and the dragon, siblings Caterina, Francesco, and Lorenzo produced their first bubble: a 2021 vintage with disgorgement in 2024. A very pleasant and already mature discovery, not an experiment: competence and a steady hand bring exotic hints, sun-kissed citrus, and bread crumbs to the glass. Properly acidic, silky yet decisive.
- Calatroni Poggio Dei Duca – Oltrepò Pavese DOCG Classic Method Pinot Nero Pas Dosé 2020
This sapid, fresh, and breezy bubble is a small masterpiece in a bottle. The Pinot Nero grapes grown in Rocca De’ Giorgi, at 550 meters above sea level, are hand-harvested and then, after gentle pressing, divided into two parts: 20% of them will ferment in oak barrels, while the rest will ferment in steel. After 48 months in bottle on the yeasts, the nose cannot help but sense the explosion of hillside flowers, Pomella apple, and a memory of dry pastries. The perlage, needless to say, is extremely fine.
- Frecciarossa – Oltrepò Pavese DOCG Classic Method Pinot Nero Bianco Extra Brut Bio
The Frecciarossa Extra Brut Bio Classic Method opens with an almost sweet sensation on the palate—immediately replaced by perfect and disruptive acidity; twenty months on the yeasts to then bring white flowers and citrus peels to the glass. The Pinot Nero grapes destined for this sparkling wine are harvested early in the morning, to have a lower berry temperature during gentle pressing. The perlage? Long-lasting, perfect.
