Serve Prosecco with holiday meals

We’re big fans of Prosecco for good reason, especially this time of year. It’s a great way to celebrate and start a holiday meal, and your guests will appreciate it.

Prosecco is fresh and clean with lively bubbles. Its flavors compliment turkey and ham, and it’s affordable.

Prosecco can be “Spumante” fully sparkling or “Fizzante” semi-sparkling. Some still Prosecco, without bubbles, is produced but is rarely exported.

Prosecco comes from the Friuli-Venezia region of Italy, which is in the northeast. The area borders Austria, Slovenia, the Adriatic Sea and is rimmed by the Dolomite Mountains. The area has a sub-Mediterranean climate perfect for growing the Glera grape, which is the principle grape that makes up Prosecco. Like Champagne, the label will reflect the amount of residual sugar. It’ll state “Brut,” Extra Dry” or “Dry.” Brut has the least residual sugar, “Dry” the most.

Recommendations

▪ Ruffino Prosecco Extra Dry Valdobbiadene, Italy – NV – about $13. This sparkling wine makes an excellent aperitif. It’s crisp and clean with fine bubbles and a pleasant straw color. It’s fruity and elegant with citrus notes of apples and pears accompanying subtle notes of wisteria and elder. You’ll find a pleasant finish with a drive of peaches.

▪ Zolin Prosecco Dress Code Veneto, Italy – NV – about $16. Zonin has been producing Prosecco with 100 percent Glera grapes for a long time. Italian DOC regulation now allow for Prosecco to be blended with a maximum 15 percent of other grape varieties. Zonin recently released white, grey, and black Prosecco versions each with a different blend and its own unique taste profile. Collectively they refer to the trio as the “Dress Code.”

The color of each edition is reflected in the color of its bottle.

White Edition contains 91 percent Glera and 9 percent Pinot Bianco. This Brut sparkler is a clean and fresh aromatic wine. It’s crisp, and fruity with floral notes and flavors of tropical fruit.

Grey Edition contains 87 percent Glera and 13 percent Pinot Grigio. This Brut sparkling wine is soft and smooth with subtle apple flavors with a light ginger finish.

Black Edition contains 90 percent Glera and 10 percent Pinot Noir. This Brut sparkling wine shows the finesse and elegance of Pinot Noir in this version. It has silky notes of apple, rose, and cardamom.

In honor of the holidays, here is one of our favorite recipes:

Cranberry-Pear Sauce

This easy recipe makes a great alternative side dish to traditional cranberry sauce.

1 12 oz. bag fresh cranberries

2 fresh pears, peeled, cored, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

1 cup orange marmalade

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup grated orange peel

1 tsp. dry mustard

3/4 tsp. ground coriander

3/4 tsp. dry crushed red pepper

Boil the cranberries in a large pot until they’re tender and pop. Drain the cranberries and add in all the other ingredients. Cover the pot and cook, over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture thickens, about 30 minutes. Allow to cool and serve. May be made ahead. If you’re adventuresome, top it with a tablespoon of Gran Marnier just before serving.

This story was originally published November 21, 2016 at 1:52 PM with the headline "Serve Prosecco with holiday meals."