Good luck finding a 94-pointer VINTAGE RESERVE Champagne for this little money.

With Franciacorta, we’re talking real-deal Champagne replicas that threaten the queen of bubbles’ throne.

Here’s a blend of 70% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Noir from the estate vineyards of Arzelle, Rovere, San Carlo, and Ragnoli, this gem features only the finest lots of base wine, all matured in oak for 6 months on the lees, followed by maturation in bottle, also on the lees, for at LEAST 5 YEARS! And with no dosage added, hence the heralded ‘Dosaggio Zero’ designation.

Why Franciacorta and not Champagne?

Wine Enthusiast explains it well. If there’s a wine gem that’s just waiting to be widely discovered, it’s Franciacorta. A world-class metodo classico, or bottle-fermented, sparkler, it boasts pedigree and style, yet remains largely unknown outside of Italy… For years, Franciacorta has been compared to Champagne, because the two wines use the same bottle-fermentation method and primary grape varieties—but the comparisons end there. The best Franciacortas have their own identity.

While Prosecco remains the most famous of Italian sparklers, it’s obviously inferior as Decanter explains “At the beginning of the 1960s, Franciacorta was just a twinkle in the eye of Italian producers looking on at Champagne’s enduring success. Sixty years later, it has arguably become the most successful metodo classico appellation in Italy and is slowly gaining an international audience. Success for Franciacorta should be measured differently to success for Prosecco – which is by far Italy’s most popular sparkling wine. Production of the former is tiny in comparison, although Franciacorta is in fact far ahead of other metodo classico wines…”

And we revert to Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate to single out Berlucchi as the modern day superstar of this insiders’ find style: “Among the various holdings of Guido Berlucchi is the stunning Renaissance Palazzo Lana with frescoed ceilings, grey stone trimming and open spaces that are drenched in sunlight. This remarkable piece of architecture is the inspiration for the Palazzo Lana line of sparkling wines introduced with the 2004 vintage. Guido Berlucchi (the man) and his friends Franco Ziliani and Giorgio Lanciani invented the concept of Franciacorta sparkling wine in 1954. Today, the company is managed by Franco Ziliani’s children Cristina, Arturo and Paolo.”

Sadly, not much is imported, finders’ keepers!

94 Points – Wine Enthusiast

“This zero-dosage momentum excites Arturo Ziliani, the enologist, CEO and co-owner along with his brother and sister of the Guido Berlucchi winery, the largest producer in the denomination. In 1955, his father, enologist Franco Ziliani, made a bold proposition to nobleman and wine producer Guido Berlucchi to make bottle-fermented wines. The pair’s 1961 sparkler forever changed the destiny of Franciacorta. Today, Arturo shares the goal of other top producers that would like to see the entire denomination certified organic. “Organic viticulture and dosage-zero bottlings are the future of Franciacorta,” he says. Bone-dry and elegant, this polished sparkler has aromas of spring wildflower, honey, white stone fruit and bread crust. On the vibrant palate, a silky perlage accompanies ripe yellow apple, peach and ginger before finishing on an almond note.”