Our Wine Of The Week is Cupcake Vineyards Prosecco. This inexpensive sparkling wine is produced from imported Italian DOC (1) – the mid-level quality level for Italian wines. This is a fruity wine with sweet melon flavors, a dry finish and a moderate alcohol level of 11.5%. I’ve been drinking a lot of Prosecco as an afternoon cooler during the recent heat wave here in Northern California and I like the Cupcake Vineyards product. A 750ml bottle retails around $10 to $12, the three pack pictured below can be found in grocery and beverage stores for around $11. The bottle closure is a comfortable plastic twist cap.
We’re featuring this wine because it is a good sip, also to draw attention to the many producers who now offer single serving bottles in 1, 3, 4 and 6 packs of 187ml bottles. Visit any grocery or wine retailer and you may – as I did – discover over a dozen producers taking up significant shelf space with splits (half bottles) and single servings. There are times when a single serving is all that’s needed and you may be surprised how well the quality is maintained in the smaller bottles.
Cupcake Vineyards is Livermore, California, producer of affordable red, white, blush and sparkling wines.
(1) There are three levels of quality used on the labels of Italian wines. From low to high, they are:
DO — Denominazione di Origine (designation of origin, seldom used)
DOC — Denominazione di Origine Controllata (controlled designation of origin)
DOCG — Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (controlled and guaranteed designation of origin).
