I Borboni - Asprinio Spumante Brut NV

Beta Offer #13 of 16

Bottom Line Up Front - I Borboni's Brut Asprinio Spumante is an elegant sparkling wine made in Lusciano, Campania, about 25 minutes north of downtown Naples. It has an inviting citrus fruit flavor profile and a laser-sharp minerality. With this wine, Open Tuesday members have a unique opportunity to sample a hidden gem Italian sparkler that is otherwise only available in Europe.

My notes while tasting: “Deep herbal nose, lemons, honey, subtle effervescence, lots of grip, clean. Who knew?”

(To order, just click the link above and follow the prompts, or scroll to the end of this message for step-by-step instructions.)

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Fellow wine geeks,

One of my favorite things about wine is that it finds a way to surprise us every so often. It doesn’t matter how much you read, who you talk to, or how many great bottles you taste. At least three or four times a year, I find myself saying, “Wow, I didn’t know wine could do that.” 

My most recent “Wow, I didn’t know wine could do that” moment came when I tasted this Asprinio Brut for the first time. The distinctive flavors and overall quality were eye-opening. I had no idea the largely unknown Asprinio grape, native to Campania, could make such a memorable sparkling wine. 

Our friend Lindsay Gabbard of Rimessa Roscioli brought this sparkler to an Open Tuesday gathering in January. (Please don’t miss Rimessa Roscioli if you are ever in Rome.) Ever since, I can’t stop buying it. This Spumante Brut has become one of our primary house wines. My wife and mother-in-law adore it. There is no better value in the Italian sparkling wine market. 

The first wine ever produced under the “I Borboni” label was an Asprinio Spumante Brut in 1982. This small estate, owned by the Numeroso family, now specializes in Asprinio-based sparkling wines. This is where they are on the map:I Borboni - Asprinio di Aversa. For the military and veterans in the group, the U.S. Naval Support Activity in Gricignano di Aversa is less than a 15-minute drive from I Borboni.

The name “I Borboni” pays homage to the glorious population known as the Bourbons, a nickname for Italians who lived under the House of Bourbon during southern Italy's 18-19th century golden age.

Asprinio has the same DNA as fellow Campania native grape Greco, but the two varieties have different flavor profiles. Asprinio-based wines typically show a more tart acidity and brighter citrus fruit notes than Greco.

According to I Borboni, this wine should be served at 43 degrees Fahrenheit. Ideal pairings are seafood dishes, raw shellfish, fried foods, and mozzarella di bufala. I’ll add that the combination of good takeout Chinese and this wine is unbeatable.

Only three more Open Tuesday beta offers remain!

Here are a few hints about what’s on tap: Wine number 16 is sometimes called the queen of Italian wine; offer 15 will be a rosé (rosato in Italian); and wine 14 is a red from central Italy.

If you are looking for wines to help fill a case, 7 of our previous 12 offers are still open (including several white wines).

I Borboni - Asprinio Spumante Brut NV

12% alcohol by volume

(To order, just click the link above and follow the prompts.)

Happy Tuesday,

Chris

If you have any questions or feedback, please email us: [email protected].  

How it works: 

After clicking one of the two links above, you’ll be able to request 1-12 bottles. Actually, that’s all you have to do!

About a week later, when we close the offer, you’ll get an email confirming how many bottles we allocated to your account. We will charge you when the wines are allocated.

We’ll do our best to allocate all the bottles you request. But when there are more requests than bottles available, we’ll allocate one bottle to all requesting members before allocating a second bottle to anyone. We want as many members as possible to try these wines.

This I Borboni Asprinio Spumante is offer number 13 of 16 during the spring private beta test. We are sending offers on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday for six straight weeks (starting on 3/29).

We ship in increments of 12. With 16 offers in this tranche, there should be plenty of chances to get to 12, 24, or 36. If you don’t have an increment of 12 at the end of the beta test, we will get in touch.

Wines from the beta tranche will ship in late May-early June for $5 per bottle (if you have an increment of 12.) This is about the same as the price to ship coast-to-coast within the U.S. - but our wines come directly from Italy.

Once your payment method is on file, you can make future requests with just a few clicks from the offer email. If you don’t have a card on file, you can add one during your first order. Your personal financial information is protected by Stripe.

Chris MacLean

Rob Genova

Open Tuesday Wines S.r.l.s.

Via Augusto Anfossi 19, 20135 Milano - Italy