Once I read that in every legend there is a truth and in every truth there is a legend. Who am I to deny such a statement? It shows especially true when it comes to winemaking and the history of it.
Today’s story ( which may not be entirely real… but close) speaks about friendship and betrayal, invention, and pure greediness.
We’re talking about a great Italian lived at the end of 1800 , his passion for wine, his genius…and a greedy Frenchman, of course.
Federico Martinotti (whose name make us wine enthusiasts shiver in delight) was a winemaker and inventor who, in 1895, created a new way to make sparkling wines that was faster, safer, and gave a freshness to the wine that Champagne was lacking, creating our beloved and cherished Prosecco!
With his new revolutionary machine, sparkling wine wasn’t made directly in the bottle anymore but, when the second fermentation began in a pressure-controlled steel tank.
“Genius” meant he didn’t seek fame or money, so he didn’t trademark it…or at least not as fast as he should have.
It’s here that history and myth blends: legend says that one of his best friends, Monsieur Charmat, saw the potential of this revolutionary invention and in 1907 patented it instead of him!
This is one of the many reasons we Italians are not usually fond of our French neighbors…
Fun fact: although the legal name for prosecco making is the “Charmat method”, in Italy we strongly refute it and we use names such as “Martinotti method“ or “Italian method” instead!
