In the pink. Brachetto proves a success for Soumah

The brachetto grape is very much a bit-part player in the diverse and colourful theatre of Italian wine.

Brachetto is a red wine grape grown primarily in Piedmont that dates back to Roman times and Brachetto d'Acqui is made in in both still and spumante versions.

Brachetto tends to produce light-bodied, aromatic wines with distinctive notes of candied ripe strawberries. In Brachetto d'Acqui it produces a slightly sweet sparkling wine that can be similar to Lambrusco, and has been called a red equivalent of the sweetish white Moscato d'Asti. 

In recent years, brachetto has found a home at Soumah Wines in the Yarra Valley, where they produce both a still and a frizzante (gently sparkling) version that are both defiantly pink in colour. 

I tasted both with my tasting group this week and the reaction was largely - but not uniformly - positive. 

Both wines are low in alcohol and offer brightness, freshness and delightful summer refreshment when enjoyed lightly chilled. 

The 2020 Brachetto Frizzante ($28) is described as like "liquid Turkish delight with the sweet flavours of rose water and strawberries". 

My favourite, although only marginally, was the 2020 Brachetto Tranquillo ($32) - a lovely aperitif or dessert wine with a very similar flavour profile. Pair it with a summer tart. 

Pizzini, Parish Hill and La Fattoria  are among the other Australian producers of brachetto.  

For details see https://soumah.com.au/