The name: Brachetto translates from the Piedmontese dialect term ‘brachet per cantè’ as ‘wine to make you sing’. Brachetto is not the same grape as Moscato Nero which is still mistakenly called Brachetto. Nor is Bracchetone, which is found in the Roero region of Piemonte but is a different variety to Brachetto. ‘Braccheto del Piemonte’ is an incorrect synonym for Brachetto.

Site selection: Brachetto prefers clay-rich, calcareous marl soils.

Wine style: Braccheto makes perfumed, light-bodied wines which range from still via lightly sparkling to fully sparkling, the latter often sweet and low in alcohol. The sparkling form of Brachetto was developed in the late 1800s by Bersano, using the Charmat method. Passito wines are made from Brachetto grapes dried either on or o! the vine. Typical “avours include sour red cherry, raspberry, cinnamon, nutmeg.

Wines: Piedmont: Brachetto d’Acqui DOCG. | Piemonte DOC Brachetto.

Bibliography

Italian Wine Unplugged (Positive Press, 2017), p.86.

See Ian D’Agata, Native Wine Grapes of Italy (University of California Press, 2014).