Borgo Maragliano Chardonnay Brut is one of those bottles that makes us check the price twice. It’s a sparkling Chardonnay from a family estate in Piedmont (home of Barolo and Barbaresco), made with fruit from a single hillside vineyard and aged on its lees for eight months. And no, this wine does not cost an arm and a leg! It’s only $12.95!
The Galliano family has grown grapes in Loazzolo since Giovanni Galliano purchased his first vineyard there in 1850. Five generations later, the family is still farming these hills. In an area best known for Moscato, Carlo Galliano saw the potential for Chardonnay and began making sparkling wines that have become an important part of the estate’s work.
The fruit for this Brut comes from Crevoglio, a steep, east-facing vineyard about 1,345 feet above sea level. Its sandstone and tufaceous soils are part of what makes this site distinctive. The wine itself is 100% Chardonnay, fermented first in stainless steel and then a second time in a pressurized tank to create its bubbles. It rests on the fermentation lees for another eight months, which is why the estate calls it “8 Mesi.”
At $12.95, we’d keep a couple of bottles cold. It’s an easy wine to open before dinner, and it’s good enough to keep pouring once the food arrives.
It pours bright straw in color, with fine bubbles and a creamy mousse. The palate is lively and balanced, with Chardonnay’s softer side giving the wine a little more substance than its price might suggest. Serve it as an aperitif, or bring it to the table with seafood, fresh cheese or a warm vegetable tart.
The Galliano family has grown grapes in Loazzolo since Giovanni Galliano purchased his first vineyard there in 1850. Five generations later, the family is still farming these hills. In an area best known for Moscato, Carlo Galliano saw the potential for Chardonnay and began making sparkling wines that have become an important part of the estate’s work.
The fruit for this Brut comes from Crevoglio, a steep, east-facing vineyard about 1,345 feet above sea level. Its sandstone and tufaceous soils are part of what makes this site distinctive. The wine itself is 100% Chardonnay, fermented first in stainless steel and then a second time in a pressurized tank to create its bubbles. It rests on the fermentation lees for another eight months, which is why the estate calls it “8 Mesi.”
At $12.95, we’d keep a couple of bottles cold. It’s an easy wine to open before dinner, and it’s good enough to keep pouring once the food arrives.
It pours bright straw in color, with fine bubbles and a creamy mousse. The palate is lively and balanced, with Chardonnay’s softer side giving the wine a little more substance than its price might suggest. Serve it as an aperitif, or bring it to the table with seafood, fresh cheese or a warm vegetable tart.
