Red Grape · Emilia Romagna
Lambrusco is the dry sparkling red of Modena and Reggio Emilia: a chilled, foaming, savoury wine built to cut through Parmigiano, prosciutto and rich pork, and a world away from the sweet cheap fizz that flooded export shelves in the 1970s.
Lambrusco (say Lahm-BROO-sko) is a family of grapes. It makes fun sparkling wines, both sweet and dry, and they are among the most popular in the world. Production sits mostly in Emilia Romagna, above all in the area between Parma, Modena and Reggio Emilia. It also sits in Lombardia, in the province of Mantua.
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Setting it straight
The anchor fact: Real Lambrusco is a dry, savoury, fizzy red, not the sweet cheap wine that made its name abroad.
Taste · Where it sits
Forget scores out of five. Here’s Lambrusco described against grapes you already know.
Light and easy: a fizzy red you can pour cold by the tumbler, not a heavy wine to brood over.
Soft and low overall; featherlight in Sorbara, with Grasparossa carrying a little more grip and a foamy, faintly bitter edge.
Brisk and mouth-watering, sharpest in pale Sorbara; together with the fizz, it is what lets the wine slice through fat and salt.
Generous cherry and raspberry fruit even when the wine is dry; the best is bone-dry secco, but the family runs on through off-dry amabile to sweet dolce.
Key flavours
The map
Lambrusco is light to medium, soft tannin, mapped against other red grapes you can buy. The closer a grape sits, the more its weight and grip resemble Lambrusco.
Is this for you?
Reach for it when…
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Serving guide
Serve at
8-13°C
Serve cold, around 8 to 13C: cooler for a pale, brisk Sorbara as an aperitivo, a touch warmer for a fuller Grasparossa alongside food.
Decant
No
Never decant. Air and agitation only knock the fizz flat; pour it straight from a cold bottle.
Glass
Standard Red Wine Glass
A standard red glass gives the dark-berry aroma room, though in an Emilian osteria you will just as often see it poured into a plain tumbler.
Drink within
1-3 days
Drink it young and fizzy, within one to three years of the vintage, while the fruit is vivid and the mousse lively.
Cellar
1-2 years
Not a wine for the cellar: there is no reward in age, only the slow fading of the fresh fruit and bubble that make it.
On the table
Start with the home-table matches that made the grape, then browse the full cuisine library.
The Emilian handshake
Hot puffs of fried dough draped with prosciutto di Parma, mortadella and culatello; the fizz and fresh acidity cut the fat and salt of the salumi board, exactly the job Lambrusco was born for.
Ragu's fizzy foil
Against the rich meat ragu and bechamel of lasagne alla bolognese, a dry Grasparossa's mousse and dark-cherry fruit lift each forkful instead of piling weight on weight.
Cutlet, prosciutto, Parmigiano
A breaded veal cutlet crowned with prosciutto and melted Parmigiano is pure Modena and Bologna richness; the chilled, savoury fizz slices clean through the fried crumb and cheese.
Modena's chocolate cake
The dense, dark chocolate and almond cake of Vignola is the place to reach for a sweeter amabile or dolce Lambrusco, whose berry fruit and bubble echo the cake without cloying.
Browse every pairing
Buy it · three to start with
A curated trio across the price range, then every Lambrusco on sale in the UK right now.
12 of 20 bottles
5 retailers
Emilia / dell'Emilia
5 retailers
£13.50
3 retailers
Reggiano
3 retailers
£12.30
2 retailers
Reggiano
2 retailers
£11.50
1 retailer
Lambrusco Grasparossa di Castelvetro
1 retailer
£9.80
1 retailer
Lambrusco di Sorbara
1 retailer
£10.95
1 retailer
Emilia / dell'Emilia
1 retailer
£11.00
1 retailer
Emilia / dell'Emilia
1 retailer
£11.00
1 retailer
Emilia / dell'Emilia
1 retailer
£11.00
1 retailer
Emilia / dell'Emilia
1 retailer
£11.05
1 retailer
Emilia / dell'Emilia
1 retailer
£11.05
1 retailer
Emilia / dell'Emilia
1 retailer
£11.50
1 retailer
Emilia / dell'Emilia
1 retailer
£12.10
Denominations
The appellations where Lambrusco plays a starring role.
Where it grows
Italy's pasta plains pour fizzy Lambrusco from Modena and Reggio, ageworthy Sangiovese di Romagna, Albana DOCG whites, and Bologna's gentle Pignoletto. Read more
From Franciacorta classic-method bubbles to Valtellina mountain Nebbiolo and Lugana lake-cool whites, Lombardy spans 5 DOCGs across roughly 25,000 hectares of Read more
The terroir
Lambrusco is the wine of the Emilian plain, grown on the flat, fertile land around Modena and Reggio Emilia between the Apennine foothills and the Po. It is less one grape than a clan of related dark varieties, each with its own zone and character, and it spills west into Lombardy around Mantova as well.
Sorbara
The sandy plain between the Secchia and Panaro rivers, north of Modena.
The palest and most perfumed: light in colour, high in acid, all raspberry, redcurrant and rose petal. Poor fruit-set keeps yields low and the wine delicate.
Grasparossa di Castelvetro
The first low hills south of Modena, around Castelvetro.
The darkest and most structured: deep purple, foamier, with more tannin, grip and a savoury, faintly bitter edge. The one for the richest food.
Salamino di Santa Croce
The Modena plain around Santa Croce, near Carpi.
Named for its small, salami-shaped bunches; a deeply coloured, aromatic middle ground between featherlight Sorbara and sturdy Grasparossa.
Producers
The one estate on the site that works with Lambrusco so far.
Editorial
Fruity scents, with hints of violet. It is fresh, balanced and harmonious, with a savoury finish. It is mainly made as a sparkling wine by the Charmat method.
Lambrusco's sparkle is usually made in the tank, not the bottle, through a fast second fermentation under pressure that traps the fruit and the froth, which is exactly why it is meant to be poured young and cold rather than laid down.
How Lambrusco is madeThe sweet versions, both red and rosé, make excellent dessert wines.
The Grasparossa clone takes its name from the red colour its leaves turn in autumn. It is a dry sparkling wine, with aromas of cherry, plum and blackberry, woven through with hints of spice.
An old native variety that is probably the best example of Lambrusco. It takes its name from the hamlet of Sorbara, in the municipality of Bomporto (in the Modena province).
This vine comes from the province of Carpi, and from there it has spread across the province of Modena. It gives a cheerful, fresh wine, ruby in colour, with intense fruity aromas.
Lambrusco goes back to the ancient Romans, under the name Lambrusca Vitis. Since then it has found its place in the Italian wine trade. It began as a drink the peasants had on feast days. Later it grew more popular, because it was cheap to buy and pleasant to drink.
In the ’70s a big market demand, heavily driven by the US, gave Lambrusco a bad name as a cheap, low-quality product. That has changed a lot over the past few years, thanks to more care in the vinification and in the choice of clone. The wine has won back its rightful image as a refined, quality product.
Good to know
Lambrusco is an easy to drink sparkling wine, both sweet and dry, pink or red, obtained from the fragrant Lambrusco grapes (including the various clones Grasparossa, Salamino and Sorbara).
Lambrusco wines may different depending on the clone and the specific production area. They are normally all lively wines with plenty of red fruit, low alcohol content, delicate bubbles and gentle acidity.
Lambrusco is a sparkling red or pink wine that can produce both dry and sweet versions. Before purchasing, think carefully about the food you are about to pair it with.
Lambrusco wines are produced in Italy and more specifically in the regions of Emilia Romagna and Lombardia. The city which produces the best quality of Lambrusco is Modena and its neighbouring beautiful hills.
Thanks to its freshness and lively taste, Lambrusco is the perfect aperitif. It is also an excellent companion to some of the typical dishes of Emilia Ro
Explore by style
Jump to the editorial guide for each style this grape turns up in.
Keep exploring
