1980 Franciacorta Cuvee Annamaria Clementi

The 1980 Dosage Zéro Franciacorta Riserva Annamaria Clementi is amazingly fresh, opening slowly in the glass, delicate and refined, wafting up with a pretty blend of wildflowers, ground ginger and dried apricots. This is elegance personified with a velvety bead of tantalizing bubbles that fills the palate, mixing salty and sweet as mineral-tinge pit fruits give way to exotic spice. The 1980 tapers off impossibly fresh, pinching at the cheeks with a bump of residual acidity as hints of cardamom and dried citrus rinds slowly fade. It’s a stunning example of a mature Franciacorta, having spent forty years maturing on its lees. Also of note is that the 1980 differs from the modern mix of varieties that make up the wine, being a blend of 40% Pinot Nero, 39% Chardonnay and 21% Pinot Bianco. The 1980 is a new release. Disgorged: Summer 2023.