A Bet on Bubbles

Over the past two or three decades, an abundance of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir has been planted, much of which is used to make sparkling wines. The focus on sparkling wines in Serra Gaúcha comes as much from necessity as choice.

Because grapes for sparklers are harvested at a lower Brix (sugar level), they can be picked in good phenolic shape in January, the equivalent of July in the Northern Hemisphere. Consequently, they are at less risk for the rot and/or overripeness that often take hold later in the growing season in February and March.

To combat that pitfall, wineries are also turning more to Campanha, a dry, almost desert-like strip of Rio Grande do Sul that borders Uruguay.

“Only in the really dry summers can we get great red wines in Vale dos Vinhedos,” says Morgana Miolo, export manager for her family’s winery, Miolo Wine Group, which was founded by her father and uncles in 1989. “It’s usually quite rainy and humid during the peak of summer. Campanha isn’t as pretty. It’s mostly dry and flat, and the elevation is much lower. But it’s the best area we have for reds.”

As for Brazilian bubblies, those from Casa Valduga and Salton in Vale dos Vinhedos range from pleasant to excellent. Several of Valduga’s still wines are also quite impressive, especially a blend called Raizes Gran, which brings together Cabernets Sauvignon and Franc with Tannat.

Brazil’s most artisan sparkling wines are being made at Cave Geisse, started in the late 1970s by Chilean winemaker Mario Geisse and now run by his three sons, Daniel, Ignacio and Rodrigo.

Based in a high-elevation microzone called Pinto Bandeira (about 2,500 feet), Geisse grows Chardonnay and Pinot Noir on fractured basalt soils that allow for ample drainage and impart minerality into the wines. Geisse ages its wines for a minimum of two years, and some for as long as 15 years.

With notable bottlings like these, Brazilian wines are on a winning streak. And despite a hugely disappointing loss to Germany in the World Cup semifinals,

Brazilians remain hopeful that soon the world will take its wines as seriously as it has long admired its soccer players.