Move over Prosecco... Franciacorta is the Italian wine with sparkle

‘The English know the boom of Prosecco,’ says Maurizio Zanella, head of curvaceous winery, Ca’ del Bosco. ‘But Franciacorta, though more expensive, delivers much more emotion.’

Dapper in rhombus-patterned Gucci strides, Zanella is the most significant owner of gardens of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and, rarer here, Pinot Blanc sown between Brescia and Bergamo in affluent Lombardy. Rather than posh Prosecco, these are reaped for crafting into arguably Italy’s most incisive, complex and chic sparkling wine: Franciacorta. At its finest, evidenced by Annamaria Clementi 2007, the cuvée honouring Zanella’s mother, gracefully maturing Franciacorta is the antithesis of clumsiness, suffusing dewy chamomile, pineapple and nougat scents in a taut lift of tiny bubbles (£77.42; honestgrapes.co.uk).

Officially the toast, in broad bespoke glasses, of Milan Fashion Week, the mostly blotter-dry family of wines is crafted in small quantities by a devoted ensemble of producers. In fact, Franciacorta’s yearly supply of 17.5 million bottles pales in volume to Prosecco’s estimated 450m, or more than 300m of Champagne, which, being bottle-fermented, it more closely resembles.

Beyond the original house, considered a modest haven from Milan’s distractions, and a helipad, the winery features a life-sized concrete rhino. Symbolising humankind’s mastery of nature, it hangs in harness. Cobalt blue resin huskies, meanwhile, stand sentry upon the winery’s roof; their rose-red siblings guard sippers in the tasting salon.

At the second-largest producer, Bellavista, the figure of a bull rears, the same tiger-orange as its labels. ‘Life is in colour,’ reasons aristo-winemaker Mattia Vezzola as we pop Bellavista Alma Gran Cuvée, an exuberant Brut with pear and persimmon nuances (£28.95, slurp.co.uk).

Finally, at Fratelli Berlucchi, a winery with 16th-century frescoes, I try Casa delle Colonne Dosaggio Zero 2008, which evokes sugar-free lemon cheesecake (£30.40, tannico.co.uk). My description pleases my crucifix-sporting guide, Tilli Rizzo: ‘Franciacorta is a private jet to Prosecco’s EasyJet…