Moscato d’Asti di Strevi Contero 2023

Moscato d’Asti is made from the finest Muscat grapes, picked at full ripeness and fermented in sealed tanks.  Fermentation is arrested when the right combination of fizz (from the Carbon Dioxide produced by the fermentation) and residual sugar is attained – in this case around 2.5 bars and 130g/litre of residual sugar. The resulting honeyed, floral, delicate flavour and low level of alcohol (5.5%) makes this a delightful wine to quaff, whether as an aperif, a refreshing accompaniment to fresh strawberries (with maybe a tiny slug of Crème Anglaise), or, frankly, when you want to be reminded about sunny afternoons in Piedmont.

And I do have a lot of afternoons to remember.  I have almost lost count of the number of times I have visited the Marenco family, who own Contero, at their family farmhouse overlooking the hills above Aqui Terme.  Every group I have taken there has been blown away by the warmth of their welcome and generous sharing wine, food and time.  It really is my favourite wine producing family.

The Moscato d’Asti rounded everything off very nicely at my Northern Italian wine video tasting, and you can get an idea of how we spent those sunny afternoons from my wine tour blogs – start with 2017…

Also available in half bottle.

Bronze Medal Winner Decanter World Wine Awards 2022