Prosecco DOC

The disciplinare traces the first documents citing a Prosecco wine to the end of the 1600s, describing a delicate white wine from the Trieste Karst (carso triestino) and in particular the territory of Prosecco, a link still marked by the optional 'Trieste' mention. The Consorzio's history page cites Aureliano Acanti's 1754 praise of the 'meloaromatico Prosecco' from the Berici mountains in the province of Vicenza and Francesco Maria Malvolti's 1772 praise of the Proseccos of the Treviso hills. In 1876 a Royal School of Viticulture and Oenology was founded in Conegliano, and at the end of the 19th century Dr. Antonio Carpenè experimented with new sparkling techniques while, thanks also to Professor Federico Martinotti, natural refermentation developed in large closed containers, per the Consorzio. According to the disciplinare, the hill DOC 'Prosecco di Conegliano Valdobbiadene' was recognised in 1969, Prosecco was added to the list of table wines with geographical indication under the D.M. of 31/12/1977, and the Prosecco DOC was recognised in 2009 (D.M. 17/07/2009). The Consorzio dates the reorganisation of the 'Prosecco System' to 17 July 2009, establishing the DOCG 'Asolo - Prosecco', the DOCG 'Conegliano Valdobbiadene - Prosecco' and the DOC 'Prosecco'. Decanter (updated 2026) notes that the variety used to be called 'Prosecco' but was officially recognised as Glera in 2009, when the DOC and DOCG zones came into being and were recognised under the EU's Geographic Indications system, a move that caused some controversy elsewhere in the world. The Consorzio's 2024 review reports an EU-Mercosur agreement that would phase out use of 'Prosecco' for Brazilian sparkling wine over ten years, and that in 2024 it blocked Australian wine labelled 'Prosecco' in Japan, China, the Philippines and Ukraine.

• End of the 1600s: first documents citing a Prosecco wine, from the Trieste Karst (disciplinare)
• 1969: DOC 'Prosecco di Conegliano Valdobbiadene' recognised; D.M. 31/12/1977: Prosecco listed among table wines with geographical indication (disciplinare)
• 17 July 2009: reorganisation creating DOC Prosecco and the Asolo and Conegliano Valdobbiadene DOCGs (Consorzio); Decanter (updated 2026) dates the Glera name to the same year
• 19 November 2009: Consortium for the protection of DOC Prosecco established (Consorzio)

Prosecco DOC grapes must be grown in the provinces of Belluno, Gorizia, Padova, Pordenone, Treviso, Trieste, Udine, Venezia and Vicenza, per Article 3 of the disciplinare; Decanter (updated 2026) places Prosecco in the northeastern Italian regions of Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia. Prosecco DOC spans 28,100 hectares of vineyards (Consorzio technical sheet, 2024). The disciplinare describes the Prosecco DOC area as mainly flat with some hilly zones, distinguishing it from the hill zones of the Conegliano Valdobbiadene and Asolo DOCGs. The climate is temperate: the Alps to the north act as a barrier to cold northern currents, while scirocco winds arriving from the Adriatic to the south bring rainfall, especially in summer; at the end of summer, dry bora winds from the east bring wide day-night temperature swings, per the disciplinare. Soils are mainly alluvial with a dominant clay-silt texture and a good presence of stony material from the erosion of the Dolomites and river deposits, which gives good drainage (disciplinare); the Consorzio describes mainly clay-loam soil, rich in minerals and micronutrients. Labels may add 'Treviso' when the grapes come only from that province and processing and packaging also take place there, and 'Trieste' (or 'Trst') when the grapes come only from the province of Trieste and processing takes place in Friuli Venezia Giulia.

• Nine provinces: Belluno, Gorizia, Padova, Pordenone, Treviso, Trieste, Udine, Venezia, Vicenza (disciplinare, Article 3)
• 28,100 hectares of vineyards (Consorzio technical sheet, 2024)
• Mainly flat with some hilly zones; temperate climate between the Alps and the Adriatic (disciplinare)
• Optional 'Treviso' and 'Trieste' mentions for wines from a single province (disciplinare, Article 7)

Prosecco, Prosecco spumante and Prosecco frizzante must come from Glera vineyards, with Verdiso, Bianchetta trevigiana, Perera, Glera lunga, Chardonnay, Pinot bianco, Pinot grigio and Pinot nero (vinified white) allowed alone or together up to 15%, per the disciplinare. The disciplinare calls Glera semi-aromatic and, for spumante, names the 'Martinotti' method, natural refermentation of the base wine in large vessels or autoclaves; Decanter (2021) calls it the Charmat method, traditional for Prosecco. Spumante must be made exclusively by natural fermentation in autoclave and sold as brut nature, extra brut, brut, extra dry, dry or demi-sec; frizzante may be refermented in bottle or in autoclave, and a bottle-fermented frizzante may be hazy and must then carry 'rifermentazione in bottiglia' on the label. The Consorzio says Glera ripens between the end of August and the beginning of September, the clear must ferments with selected yeasts at around 18°C for 15 to 20 days, and the second fermentation in autoclave lasts at least 30 days for frizzante and spumante. The Consorzio gives the spumante sugar bands as Brut Nature 0-3 g/litre, Extra Brut 0-6, Brut below 12, Extra Dry 12-17, Dry 17-32 and Demi-sec 32-50. Its technical sheet gives 1 to 2.5 atmospheres for semi-sparkling, more than 3 atmospheres for sparkling and sparkling rosé, and less than 1 atmosphere for still Prosecco. In 2024, 76.7% of bottles were sparkling, 9.4% sparkling rosé, 13.8% semi-sparkling and 0.1% still, and among sparkling bottles Extra Dry took 61.1% and Brut 33.6% (Consorzio technical sheet, Osservatorio Economico).

• Glera plus up to 15% Verdiso, Bianchetta trevigiana, Perera, Glera lunga, Chardonnay, Pinot bianco, Pinot grigio, Pinot nero vinified white (disciplinare)
• Spumante: natural fermentation in autoclave only; the disciplinare names the 'Martinotti' method, Decanter (2021) the Charmat method
• Spumante sugar bands per the Consorzio: Brut Nature 0-3, Extra Brut 0-6, Brut below 12, Extra Dry 12-17, Dry 17-32, Demi-sec 32-50 g/litre
• 2024 bottles: 76.7% sparkling, 9.4% sparkling rosé, 13.8% semi-sparkling, 0.1% still (Consorzio technical sheet)

Prosecco DOC is made in the provinces of Treviso, Venice, Vicenza, Padua, Belluno, Gorizia, Pordenone, Trieste and Udine, with Glera as the traditional variety and Verdiso, Bianchetta Trevigiana, Perera, Glera Lunga, Chardonnay, Pinot Bianco, Pinot Grigio and Pinot Nero, vinified off the skins, permitted up to 15 percent overall, per the Consorzio. The disciplinare lists four types: Prosecco, Prosecco spumante, Prosecco spumante rosé and Prosecco frizzante. Minimum total alcohol is 10.50% vol for Prosecco and frizzante and 11.00% vol for spumante and spumante rosé, with a minimum total acidity of 4.5 g/l; frizzante, spumante and spumante rosé may be released from 1 January of the year after the harvest, and a spumante labelled millesimato must contain at least 85% wine of the stated vintage. The Conegliano Valdobbiadene DOCG zone lies within the Prosecco DOC production zone, in the hill territory of the communes its disciplinare lists, including Conegliano, Vittorio Veneto, Vidor and Valdobbiadene, with a maximum yield of 13.50 tonnes per hectare, per its MASAF disciplinare. Its Rive mention covers 43 listed geographic units, at 13.0 tonnes per hectare, and Superiore di Cartizze comes from a 106-hectare subzone of Valdobbiadene at 12.00 tonnes per hectare, with hand harvesting required for Cartizze, Rive and sui lieviti wines. Asolo Prosecco or Asolo DOCG comes from the Montello and Colli Asolani hills in the province of Treviso, at 100 to 450 metres, with a maximum yield of 13.5 tonnes per hectare, per the MASAF-published consolidated disciplinare.

• Prosecco DOC types: Prosecco, spumante, spumante rosé, frizzante (disciplinare, Article 1)
• Minimum total alcohol 10.50% vol (Prosecco, frizzante) and 11.00% vol (spumante, rosé); minimum total acidity 4.5 g/l (disciplinare)
• Conegliano Valdobbiadene DOCG: listed hill communes inside the DOC zone, 13.50 t/ha; Rive 13.0 t/ha across 43 listed units; Superiore di Cartizze 106 ha, 12.00 t/ha (MASAF disciplinare)
• Asolo Prosecco or Asolo DOCG: Montello and Colli Asolani hills, 100 to 450 metres, 13.5 t/ha (MASAF disciplinare)

Decanter (2021) reports that Prosecco DOC rosé was approved by the Italian agriculture ministry in May 2020 and by EU officials in late October 2020; MASAF's release of 28 October 2020 announced the EU approval of the new type, with the vintage indication compulsory. The disciplinare requires 85% to 90% Glera and 10% to 15% Pinot nero vinified red, natural fermentation in autoclave for at least 60 days, the brut nature, extra brut, brut and extra dry types only, and the term millesimato followed by the harvest year on the label. In 2024 sparkling rosé made up 9.4% of Prosecco DOC bottles (Consorzio technical sheet). Maximum grape yields by denomination, per the MASAF disciplinari: Prosecco DOC 18 t/ha for Glera (13.5 t/ha for rosé Pinot nero), Asolo Prosecco DOCG 13.5 t/ha, Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco DOCG 13.50 t/ha. Alongside Prosecco DOC (18 t/ha for Glera) sit two DOCGs created in the same 2009 reorganisation: Asolo Prosecco DOCG and Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco DOCG, whose hills UNESCO listed four years after Champagne's 2015 listing, per Decanter, and whose disciplinare lists 43 geographic units for the Rive mention plus the Superiore di Cartizze subzone. Within the Conegliano Valdobbiadene DOCG, Rive wines come from a single comune or frazione and Superiore di Cartizze from a 106-hectare subzone, per its disciplinare.

• Rosé approved by the ministry in May 2020 and by the EU in late October 2020 (Decanter, 2021); MASAF release dated 28 October 2020
• Rosé rules: 85-90% Glera, 10-15% Pinot nero vinified red, at least 60 days in autoclave, brut nature to extra dry, millesimato with the harvest year (disciplinare)
• Sparkling rosé: 9.4% of Prosecco DOC bottles in 2024 (Consorzio technical sheet)
• Hillside DOCG zones: the Conegliano Valdobbiadene disciplinare lists 43 Rive units (grapes from a single comune or frazione, 13.0 t/ha) and the 106-hectare Superiore di Cartizze subzone (12.00 t/ha), against 13.50 t/ha for the DOCG and 18 t/ha for Prosecco DOC Glera

The Consorzio's technical sheet counts 12,107 wine-growing farms, 1,046 winemakers and 362 sparkling houses (2024). The Consorzio di Tutela, based at Via Calmaggiore 23 in Treviso, was created to promote, protect and enhance the DOC, and its January 2026 release names Giancarlo Guidolin as president; the control body Valoritalia checks each batch before certification, per the Consorzio. The Consorzio reports that bottlings reached 660 million for the first time in 2024, up 7% on 2023, for an estimated consumer value of 3.6 billion euros, with exports at 82% of sales and more than 65% of bottles going to Europe and more than 26% to North America. For 2025 it reports 667 million bottles (+1.1% on 2024), with the United States the leading market at 23.8% of exports in January to September 2025. Decanter's Gemma Boucher (2024) calls Prosecco DOC Italy's leading wine denomination by volume and value, citing the consorzio's figure of more than 616 million bottles in 2023, and writes that the wines are becoming drier and more nuanced. In 2024 the Consorzio proposed changes to the disciplinare, including typologies for the Trieste mention and a Riserva for time on the yeasts, and it continues work on a Low Alcohol line of 8 to 9 degrees. The Consorzio recommends serving Prosecco at around 6-8 degrees in a fairly large tulip-shaped glass.

• 2024: 12,107 wine-growing farms, 1,046 winemakers, 362 sparkling houses (Consorzio technical sheet)
• 2024: 660 million bottles, estimated consumer value 3.6 billion euros, 82% exported (Consorzio)
• 2025: 667 million bottles, +1.1%; United States 23.8% of exports, January to September 2025 (Consorzio)
• Service per the Consorzio: around 6-8 degrees, in a fairly large tulip-shaped glass

Primary sources (MASAF and the Consorzio di Tutela della Denominazione di Origine Controllata Prosecco): https://www.masaf.gov.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeAttachment.php/L/IT/D/1%252F1%252F2%252FD.e6818b2795e7a32f7456/P/BLOB%3AID%3D23481/E/pdf?mode=download, https://www.masaf.gov.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeBLOB.php/L/IT/IDPagina/16153, https://www.masaf.gov.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeAttachment.php/L/IT/D/5%252F1%252F5%252FD.5dd710bff9aac98b5833/P/BLOB%3AID%3D14207/E/pdf?mode=download, https://www.masaf.gov.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeAttachment.php/L/IT/D/1%252F4%252Fa%252FD.3d141a071e8f57601dc9/P/BLOB%3AID%3D14600/E/pdf?mode=download, https://www.prosecco.wine/en/prosecco/production-regulation/, https://www.prosecco.wine/en/, https://www.prosecco.wine/en/prosecco/discover/history/, https://www.prosecco.wine/en/prosecco/discover/types/, https://www.prosecco.wine/en/prosecco/discover/winemaking/, https://www.prosecco.wine/en/2024-review-activities/, https://www.prosecco.wine/en/data-analysis-prosecco/, https://www.prosecco.wine/en/prosecco-doc-667-million-bottles-in-2025/, https://www.prosecco.wine/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/brochure-tecnica_ENG-24.pdf. Secondary sources: https://www.decanter.com/wine/party-prosecco-12-standout-doc-buys-541204/, https://www.decanter.com/learn/advice/whats-difference-between-champagne-and-prosecco-372451/, https://www.decanter.com/wine-news/rose-prosecco-given-the-green-light-438766/. Last verified 2026-09-25