Photo and Text by Isabella Part of text from Contratto's website
如珍珠般優雅的Contratto氣泡酒，你絕對不可錯過！
The sparkling wines labeled “metodo classico”, indicating they have been made using the classic technique of Champagne, which involve a second fermentation in the bottle and extended aging on the so-called “lees” or “dead yeast cells” at least 15 months (for non vintage) or three years (for vintage). Having more than 144 years of distinguished history, Contratto Brut is one of the tops selling metodo classico brut in Italy. It is remarkably fresh, clean, crisp and at it’s 30 € among the finest values in sparkling wine in the world. The winery of Contratto is renowned for its long-standing history. The owner Giorgio Rivetti, with his family of a number of successful brand such as LA SPINETTA bought it in June 2011 and now its celler-one of the finest in Italy, with historic aging tunnels reminiscent of the maisons of Champagne. In the 1920s and 1930s, the wines of Contratto were requested by the Vatican and the royal houses of Europe, even were exported to the British Empire.
氣泡酒標籤上標示著“metodo classico”，表示這瓶酒必須是得使用傳統香檳法所釀製，包括在瓶中二次發酵以及和酒渣或死酵母細胞一起在瓶中陳年至少15個月製作無年份氣泡酒或至少三年製作年份氣泡酒。超過144年卓越歷史的Contratto酒廠，是義大利生產不甜氣泡酒中的頂尖酒廠，Contratto不甜氣泡酒入口有著明顯的新鮮、清新和清爽口感，悠久的酒莊歷史使它有著相當聲譽，以其30歐元的價格列於所有氣泡酒之中，實屬物超所值。酒莊主人Giorgio Rivetti和他的家族成員擁有非常成功的品牌La Spinetta，於2011年六月買下此酒莊，有著歷史性的地下隧道和充滿懷舊風情的香檳酒窖，是義大利最棒的酒窖之一。早於1920和1930年代，Contratto酒廠的葡萄酒即被梵諦岡和歐洲皇室指名訂購，甚至出口至大英帝國。
Contratto locates in an ancient town of Canelli. Canelli is the historical area of the Asti Spumante industry and is the major manufacturing centre for winemaking equipment in Italy. The old castle perches on top of a hill in the centre of town, and most of the old Spumante houses have built their wineries along the bottom of the hill with extensive cellars carved directly into the limestone rock under the hill. The cellars maintain a constant 12-14 degrees temperature, it’s ideal for the process and aging of bottled wine. This network of tunnels, kilometers long, have become showcase museums for many of the wineries “underground cathedrals of wine”. The Contratto family started business here in the 1870 and in fact are not just a producer of Asti Spumante, most of their output is metodo classico “Champagne type” style of wines, as well as Piedmont’s famous big 3B reds – Barolo, Barberesco and Barbera d’Asti.
Contratto酒廠座落於古老城鎮“卡內利”，義大利歷史區域，專門生產阿斯堤氣泡酒和釀造葡萄酒相關器具的主要工業中心。舊城堡高處於城鎮中心山丘頂部，大部分老氣泡酒廠早己沿著山丘石灰岩地質底部建立其龐大地窖，這些地窖終年維持在穩定且最適合葡萄酒陳年的12-14度，如網狀般的隧道綿延數公里長，變成許多酒窖展示用的博物館、葡萄酒的地底教堂。Contratto家族早於1870年在此經營，事實上它不只生產阿斯堤氣泡酒，大部分所生產的是以 “傳統香檳法” 型態製作的氣泡酒，其品質如皮蒙特省著名三大B字母開頭的紅酒 – 巴洛洛、巴巴瑞斯可和阿斯堤巴貝拉。
(Canelli has 10,440 inhabitants, which is in the province of Asti in the Italian region of Piedmont. The area around the town is rich in vineyards and is believed to be the birthplace of the Italian sparkling wine Asti. 位於義大利皮蒙特區阿斯堤省的卡內利小鎮，住有10,440位居民，此鎮附近區域的葡萄園非常豐饒，一直被認為是義大利氣泡酒阿斯堤的誕生地。)
Historically, Contratto used to buy in grapes from the Oltrepò zone with a 25 hectare vineyard at Montaldo Pavese, whose high altitude ensures slower ripening and acidity. Oltrepò Pavese, which means “Pavia across the Po”, is a region in Lombardy, in northern Italy. Its proximity along the Po river and the city of Milan. It is considered the most traditional in terms of production and styles in all of Lombardy. The cool climate region makes it the perfect location for growing Pinot Nero (Noir), which is produced plentifully in rosso (red), rosato (rose) and sparkling wines. The Oltrepò Pavese Metodo Classico (sometimes called “Champagne Oltrepò”) was awarded the superior DOCG classification in 2007. The bianco (white) version (blanc de blancs) is produced with a minimum 85％ Pinot Nero, which up to 15％ from Pinot Bianco, Pinot Grigio and / or Chardonnay.
(The wine For England was named as such in 1930, when Contratto began producing a low-dosage wine for the English market. At that time, all Champagne and sparkling wines were extremely sweet and the Royal Court of England was the first in Europe to develop a drier palate for wine. Today For England is a zero dosage (no added liquor d'expedition) and For England Rosé(100% Pinot Noir) has very little residual sugar. Contratto為英國市場釀製少量添糖的氣泡酒時 “For England”這款氣泡酒於是就在1930年命名，這在當時，所有的香檳和氣泡酒都是全面性有甜味的，而英國皇室是歐洲第一個要求製作較不甜口感的葡萄酒。時至今日，Contratto為英國所釀製的是全面沒有添糖的葡萄酒，“For England Rosé”使用百分之百的黑皮諾葡萄，是款甜度很低的氣泡酒。)
(The historic cathedral cellars at Contratto, now designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site status. Contratto具有歷史性的酒窖，現為聯合國教科文組織所選定的世界遺產之一。)
(These huge underground cellars, covering more than 5,000 square meters, were built into the heart of the hill that protects the small town of Canelli, excavated from tuff limestone to a depth of 32 meters. The project took three years of manual work to finish. 這些巨大的地底酒窖，範圍涵蓋超過5,000平方公尺長，建立在山丘的中心守護著卡內利小鎮，開鑿地底下石灰岩32公尺深，這計劃花了整整三年人力才得以完工。)
(The cellar maintains a constant annual temperature. It causes heat and humidity when wine is fermented. Here is an ideal and a natural aging environment for wine to be peacefully with mildews in cellar. 酒窖常年恆溫，葡萄酒發酵時會產生熱氣和溼氣，和酒窖裡正常的黴菌群和平共處，形成最天然理想的陳年環境。)
(Champagne bottles in racks in underground cellars. 地底酒窖裡香檳架上的香檳酒瓶。)
(Classical A shape Champagne riddle rack, 60 bottles for each side. 經典的A字型香檳架，一邊有60瓶氣泡酒。)
(From left to right : Blanc de Blancs Brut 2010 100% Chardonnay, Vineyard : Costigliole Piedmont, two years on yeast in bottle, For England Brut Rosé 2009 100% Pinot Noir, Vineyards : Oltepò Pavese, 3 years on yeast in bottle, For England Pas Dosé 2009 Blanc de Noir, 100% Pinot Noir, Vineyards : Oltepò Pavese, 3 years on yeast in bottle. The middle one For England Brut Rosé 2009 is my favorite. The nose dominates with aromas of fresh bread crust and green apple, the palate amazes with minerality, crispness and aromas of red fruit such as strawberries and long, full-bodies finish. 由左至右依序為: 2010年不甜的白中白氣泡酒，是用百分之百的夏多內葡萄所釀製，葡萄園 : 皮蒙特的Costigliole，酵母和酒一起在瓶中發酵兩年；2009年不甜的粉紅氣泡酒 ，是用百分之百的黑皮諾所釀製，葡萄園 : Oltepò Pavese，酵母和酒一起在瓶中發酵三年；2009年不添糖的黑中白氣泡酒 ，也是是用百分之百的黑皮諾所釀製，葡萄園 : Oltepò Pavese，酵母和酒一起在瓶中發酵三年。中間那瓶2009年不甜的粉紅氣泡酒是我最喜歡的，它聞來有非常新鮮的麵包皮和青蘋果的香味，入口嚐來有不可思議的礦石味，相當清爽，有紅色水果像是草莓的香氣出現，尾韻飽滿悠長。)
Italian champagne-style wines, however, still face a battle against one of the world’s most formidable product names, exclusive to France：in Europe, longstanding treaties prevent the use of the name “Champagne” outside France. In Italy, champagne-style wines carry the label of “metodo classico”, even though its quality is better than Champagne’s. It’s a big challenge to let people understand that high-end sparkling wine is not just French champagne. You may still prefer a bottle of champagne for celebrating special moment especially during holiday seasons; nothing wrong with that, so long as you don’t mind paying a little more attention for quality that is roughly equal. For myself, I will continue to drink champagne, but I plan to make Italian metodo classico “CONTRATTO” part of my life.
Either, you do not miss “Contratto’s Vermouth”. The modern versions of the beverage were first produced in 1575 in Turin. Vermouth was consumed as a medicinal libation until the later 19th century when it became an important ingredient in many of the famous first classic cocktails, such as the Martini, the Manhattan, and the Negroni. In addition to being consumed as an aperitif or cocktail ingredient, vermouth is also used as a substitute for wine, herbs and spices in cooking.
The production follows traditional method of cold flavor extraction (maceration) of flavors for 45 days. Followed by filtration and natural settlement for clarification, the superb flavor extract is then carefully being mixed with Cortese (Piedmont white varietal), water and cane sugar. The 17％ alcohol and 180 g/ liter sugar, the herbal combination is based on the original Contratto recipe from 1910. Its ingredients include: white wine (Cortese), cane sugar pure and in caramelized form, Italian brandy, water and over 30 different herbs and spices,which among many more such as laurel, wormwood, sage, cardamom, lemon peel, clover, nutmeg, cinnamon, sandalwood, licorice, angelica, rhubarb roots, and pimento seeds.
千萬也別錯過Contratto的苦艾酒，這時尚流行的飲品早於1575年即在都靈生產製造。苦艾酒起初是用於醫療，直到19世紀晚期它才成為許多知名典型雞尾酒的主要成份之一，例如馬丁尼、曼哈頓和尼格龍尼。苦艾酒除了當開胃酒和雞尾酒的成份外，它也替代了葡萄酒、烹調裡的香草和香料。
它遵循著傳統45天萃取風味製程，天然的過濾澄清方式取得一流風味後，小心翼翼地和皮蒙特的Cortese白葡萄混合，加上水和蔗糖去製作。17%酒精度、1公升180克的含糖量，其中香草的組成源自1910年Contratto最初的配方，它的成份包含: Cortese白葡萄酒、純蔗糖製作而成的焦糖、義大利白蘭地、水和超過30種不同的香草和香料，例如:月桂、苦艾、鼠尾草、豆蔻、檸檬皮、酢醬草、肉豆蔻、肉桂、檀香、甘草、白芷(當歸)和紅椒籽。
( GREEN CARDAMOM. 綠荳蔻。)
( HAWTHORN FLOWER LEAVES. 山楂花葉。)
(YELLOW SWEET CLOVER. Melilotus Officinalis.黃香草木樨。)
( SAFFLOWER. 紅花。)
( CURCUMA ROOT. 薑黃。)
( SWEET ORANGE PEEL. 甜橙皮。)
( ELDERBERRY FLOWER. 接骨木花。)
( ROMAN WORMWOOD. Artemesia Pontica. 羅馬苦艾。)
( CORIANDER. 芫/胡荽籽。)
( ALLSPICE SEEDS. 五香籽。)
( IBISCUS FLOWER. 木槿 洛神花。)
( CASSIA FRUIT. 桂皮。)
( NUTMEG. 肉豆蔻。)
(Fernet is made from a number of herbs and spices which include myrrh, rhubarb, chamomile, cardamom, aloe, and especially saffron, with a base of grape distilled spirits, and colored with caramel coloring. Fernet may be served as a digestif after a meal, and may also be served with coffee and espresso or mixed as a cocktail. 義大利威士忌Fernet由一些香草和香料製成，包括：沒藥、大黃、洋甘菊、小豆蔻、蘆薈，特別是番紅花，還有蒸餾的葡萄基酒，再用焦糖色澤替酒上色。Fernet可當餐後的消化酒也可以跟咖啡和濃縮咖啡一起飲用，或者是與雞尾酒調和。)
Museo Contratto : VIA G.B.GIULIANI 56, 14053 CANELLI, Italy
CONTRATTO's website : http://www.contratto.it/indexenglish.html
( As precious as blue sapphire "La Spinetta" , worth you to discover ! will be continued. 如藍寶石般珍貴的La Spinetta酒莊值得你去發掘 ! 未完 待續 )
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