No one can put an exact date on it. The grape behind Prosecco has been grown in northeast Italy for centuries: the wine called “Prosecho” was already famous in 1593, writers linked it to a Roman wine called Pucinum, and the grape is recorded under the name Prosecco in 1772. Since 2009 its official name has been Glera.
Every old grape comes with an origin story. The honest version is better than the legend, because you can see which parts are documented and which parts are tradition.
The timeline, from legend to label
- 1st century: Pucinum. Pliny the Elder praised Pucinum, a wine from the coast near today’s Trieste, and wrote that the Empress Livia credited it for her long life (she lived to 86). Nobody knows which grape made it. The link to Glera is a tradition, not a proven fact.
- 1593: “Prosecho.” The English traveler Fynes Moryson, touring northern Italy, wrote that the wine Pucinum was “now called Prosecho.” That’s one of the first known uses of the name, and it ties it to the village of Prosecco, near Trieste.
- 1754: the first poem. Aureliano Acanti mentions Prosecco in his poem “Il Roccolo Ditirambo.”
- 1772: the grape on record. Francesco Maria Malvolti writes about the grape under the name Prosecco in the Giornale d’Italia, according to the local consortium’s history. It’s the first firm record of the grape in the area: proof it was there by then, not the year it arrived.
- 1800s: west into the hills of Treviso. The grape spreads through the Veneto, and in the late 1800s winemakers there learn to make it sparkle reliably in pressure tanks. What is the Martinotti method?
- 2009: a new name. The grape is officially renamed Glera when Prosecco DOC is created.
Why the grape changed its name
For centuries, Prosecco was the name of a village, a grape and a wine. That was a problem: if Prosecco is a grape, anyone, anywhere, can plant it and put “Prosecco” on the label. In 2009, Italy made Prosecco a protected place name and renamed the grape Glera, an old local name from Friuli. Since then, only wine from the defined area of northeast Italy can be called Prosecco. Some wine writers still call the grape Prosecco out of habit. Is Prosecco a place or a grape?
What the grape is like
Glera is a white grape with thin, golden skins and large, loose bunches. It’s naturally fresh and aromatic, which is why Prosecco tastes of green apple, pear, white peach and white flowers rather than toast. It’s picked in September and made to be drunk young. There’s also a long-bunched cousin, Glera Lunga, one of the grapes allowed in small amounts in Prosecco DOC. What’s so special about Prosecco grapes?
Is Glera the only grape in Prosecco?
Almost. White Prosecco DOC must be at least 85% Glera. Prosecco DOC Rosé is 85 to 90% Glera with 10 to 15% Pinot Noir. What are the main grape varieties used in Prosecco?
Old grape, young wine
Here’s the twist. The grape is centuries old, but the sparkling wine most people mean by Prosecco is a modern one: tank-fermented bubbles from the late 1800s, a protected name from 2009 and a rosé from 2020. It’s an ancient variety that tastes best when the wine is as young as possible. What is the history of Prosecco?
That’s the idea behind Bella Principessa Prosecco DOC: 100% Glera from the Prosecco DOC area, made by a fourth-generation family winery in the Veneto, for the way people drink Prosecco now. Meet Bella Principessa Prosecco DOC
Sources: Pliny the Elder, Natural History, book 14; Fynes Moryson, An Itinerary (1617), describing his 1593 travels; Conegliano Valdobbiadene consortium history (1772 reference); Prosecco DOC Consortium.
