Tacchino Moscato d'Asti DOCG 2019

Tasting Notes

The Tacchino winery has been producing wine for more than three generations. The 25 hectare estate is located in Piedmont among the beautiful hills of the Monferrato area. The sun exposure is south/south–east, the altitude about 300m above sea level, while the “white soil” and natural environment provide the necessary shelter against the winds from North. Yields are kept low which helps produce quality wines.

This is a real family business. Luigi and his wife Renata oversee the vineyards and their two grown-up children, Romina and Alessio, take care of the cellar, choosing the best grapes for their top-quality wines. They like to mix traditional methods and modern technology with a focus on producing the best known wines of Piedmont at a fair price.

The Moscato d’Asti grape, known as Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains in France, is the classic Muscat grape and in this region of Italy the best grapes go into Moscato d’Asti, the rest into the notorious Asti. Known for its floral aromatics and high sugar content, Moscato is also often seen in dessert wines. It is notoriously difficult to grow – yields must be kept low otherwise the sugar and the aromas disappear.

This amazing sparkling wine is perfect if you like a slightly sweeter style of wine; and even if you don’t, it manages to be both slightly sweet and yet very refreshing. It has the added benefit of being low in alcohol at 5%. I usually have a run on this in the run up to Christmas as people search for something a little different to serve with dessert.

This wine is sweet and perfumed – but definitely not cloyingly sweet or overpoweringly aromatic because of the citrus and elderflower tang and lovely acidity. This makes it a light, fresh sparkling wine.

The wine is pale gold in colour, with aromas of grape, apple, elderflower, pear and orange blossom. Flavours are similar to the aromas with added lychee, lemon and a hint of peach. This is quite a delicate wine with a fine mousse but elegant and medium-bodied. Beautiful with desserts; it cuts through chocolate and other rich desserts.

Please note that this bottle is not topped with a “champagne cork” but with a standard cork which should be removed carefully with your usual corkscrew.