Famiglia Boron Raboso Veneto IGP Frizzante – Cherry & Blackcurrant Semi-Sparkling Red Wine

Famiglia Boron Raboso Veneto IGP Frizzante

Boron Raboso is one of those wines that makes you stop and ask, “Why don’t we drink more things like this?” It’s a semi-sparkling red wine from Veneto, served properly chilled, with Morello cherry, blackcurrant and fresh red-fruit character. At just 11.5% ABV, it’s lively, fruity and remarkably easy to enjoy.

And yes, this is a red wine with bubbles.

The colour is ruby red with violet reflections, but the froth itself is a striking bright pink. It immediately feels different from the usual bottle of red you might put on the table.

The style is also softer and more playful than a traditional dry red. Boron describes it as medium sweet, with enough natural acidity to keep the fruit fresh rather than sugary.

For us, this is exactly the sort of bottle to open with pizza, charcuterie, cheese or a table covered in little things to pick at.

What does Boron Raboso taste like?

The first thing you notice is the fruit.

Morello cherry and blackcurrant are the main aromas, with a broader cherry and berry character underneath.

The nose is persistent and unmistakably fruity, but there is still a proper vinous character behind it. It smells like red wine rather than fruit juice.

On the palate, Boron Raboso is soft and fruit-led with good acidity running through the wine.

That acidity matters because there is around 40g/l of residual sugar. The wine has noticeable sweetness, but the freshness keeps it lively and stops it becoming cloying.

There is also a gentle sparkle throughout the palate.

It isn’t trying to behave like Champagne or Prosecco. The bubbles are softer and more relaxed, lifting the cherry and blackcurrant flavours rather than taking over the glass.

The overall impression is juicy, fresh and slightly sweet, with enough acidity to make the next sip very easy.

A chilled red wine? Absolutely.

This is not a bottle to leave sitting at British room temperature.

Boron recommends serving Raboso at around 8–10°C.

That means properly chilled.

It might sound unusual if you normally associate red wine with room temperature, but it makes complete sense once you taste it.

The chill keeps the fruit fresh, sharpens the acidity and makes the bubbles feel livelier. It also stops the sweetness becoming too obvious.

On a warm evening, it can be far more refreshing than a conventional still red.

It’s also a brilliant bottle for people who want red-wine flavour but don’t fancy something heavy, tannic or high in alcohol.

What is Raboso?

Raboso is a traditional grape of north-eastern Italy, particularly associated with Veneto.

It is naturally high in acidity, which is one reason it works so well in this semi-sparkling style.

The acidity gives the wine freshness, while the ripe fruit and residual sugar soften the sharper edges of the grape.

The result is something quite different from Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon or most of the red wines people regularly buy in Britain.

You get real red-wine fruit and character, but with bubbles, lower alcohol and a much fresher style.

If you like discovering Italian wines that you won’t find stacked high in every supermarket, this is exactly the sort of bottle worth trying.

Made by the Boron family in Veneto

The Boron family has been making wine in this part of north-eastern Italy since 1954.

The winery is based in Loncon di Annone Veneto, in the Lison wine country of Veneto.

Today the family continues to combine generations of winemaking experience with modern fermentation equipment and temperature control.

That is particularly important with a wine like Raboso.

The point is to preserve the fruit, acidity and freshness of the grape while creating the gentle fizz that gives the wine its personality.

There is no need to make this complicated.

The grape already has plenty to say.

How is Boron Raboso made?

Boron Raboso is made from 100% Raboso grapes grown around Annone Veneto.

The grapes are harvested relatively late, during the second half of October.

They then undergo a short maceration of around four to five days at controlled temperatures.

This gives the wine its ruby-red colour and fruit character without extracting excessive tannin.

After pressing and the first fermentation, the wine undergoes a second fermentation using the Charmat method in a sealed pressure tank.

That second fermentation creates the gentle sparkle.

It’s the same broad principle used for other fresh Italian sparkling wines, although the result here is very different because Raboso is a red grape.

The finished wine has that unusual combination of red fruit, sweetness, acidity and fizz that makes it so distinctive.

What should you eat with it?

This is where Raboso becomes genuinely fun.

Boron recommends it with meat, cheese, pizza and snacks, which is about as relaxed a food-pairing brief as you could ask for.

Pizza is a particularly good place to start.

The acidity works beautifully with tomato, while the light sweetness and fruit are good with salty toppings. Try it with a simple Marinara pizza or anything topped with salami, sausage or cured meats.

Cheese works well too, especially when there is some salt or maturity involved. If you’re putting together a board, our cheese board wine guide has plenty of ideas for building the whole thing.

It’s also very good with the kind of food that doesn’t really count as a formal dinner.

Salami, prosciutto, cheese, olives, crisps and crackers all make sense. Our picky bits and charcuterie guide is probably one of the most natural places to head if that sounds like your kind of evening.

We’d happily pour it with:

• Marinara pizza
• Margherita pizza
• Salami pizza
• Spicy sausage pizza
• Charcuterie
• Prosciutto
• Salami
• Mortadella
• Cheese boards
• Parmesan
• Pecorino
• Mature cheddar
• Burgers
• Sausages
• Cold meats
• Olives and savoury snacks

If you already know what you’re eating but haven’t chosen the wine, use our food and wine pairing guide to explore hundreds of dishes and different Italian wine styles.

Who is Boron Raboso for?

This is a good bottle for people who are bored of always choosing the same thing.

If you enjoy fruit-driven reds but don’t want a huge 14.5% bottle, the 11.5% ABV is immediately appealing.

It also works for people who enjoy sweeter, softer styles of red wine.

The important thing is to know what you’re buying.

This is not a bone-dry Cabernet Sauvignon.

It is a fruity, medium-sweet, lightly sparkling red with bright acidity.

Once you understand that, the bottle makes a lot more sense.

It’s particularly good for casual evenings, parties, pizza nights and summer drinking when a conventional red can feel too heavy.

And because it is something most people in Britain won’t have tried before, it’s a brilliant bottle to put on the table when friends are round.

How should you serve it?

Serve Boron Raboso at around 8–10°C.

Keep it in the fridge before opening and serve it properly chilled.

A normal wine glass works perfectly well. You can also use a tulip-shaped sparkling-wine glass if you want to keep the fizz a little longer.

Once opened, use a sparkling-wine stopper if you plan to keep any for later.

But this isn’t really a bottle we’d expect to hang around for long.

Wine details

Producer: Famiglia Boron / Azienda Agricola Boron
Country: Italy
Region: Veneto
Area: Annone Veneto
Grape: 100% Raboso
Classification: Veneto IGP
Style: Semi-sparkling / Frizzante red wine
Sweetness: Medium sweet
ABV: 11.5%
Colour: Ruby red with violet reflections and bright pink froth
Aroma: Morello cherry, cherry and blackcurrant
Taste: Fruity, vinous and soft with good acidity
Residual sugar: Approximately 40g/l
Total acidity: Approximately 6.50g/l
Serving temperature: 8–10°C
Food pairing: Meat, cheese, pizza, charcuterie and savoury snacks
Harvest: Second half of October
Vinification: Short skin maceration followed by a second fermentation using the Charmat method
Winery: Boron family winemaking tradition since 1954

Why we chose it

Boron Raboso is exactly the sort of slightly unusual Italian wine we want people to discover.

It isn’t another Merlot.

It isn’t Prosecco dyed red.

And it certainly isn’t a heavy red that needs half an hour beside a steak before it starts making sense.

Instead, you get Morello cherry, blackcurrant, gentle bubbles, bright acidity and a medium-sweet finish at just 11.5% ABV.

Serve it cold, put a pizza in the middle of the table and let everyone help themselves.

That’s where this wine makes sense.

It’s fun without being silly, unusual without being difficult and genuinely different from most of the reds you’ll find on a UK supermarket shelf.

If you fancy trying a chilled Italian red with a bit of fizz and plenty of cherry fruit, Boron Raboso is a very easy bottle to take a chance on.

For more Italian fizz, Prosecco and alternative sparkling styles, browse our Italian sparkling wine collection.