Brachetto d'Acqui
Brachetto is an unusual Italian red grape grown primarily in Piedmont around Acqui Terme in the province of Alessandria. It produces light-bodied, highly aromatic wines with fresh fruit flavors and marked acidity. It is most often bottled as a lightly sparkling wine with a touch of sweetness known as Brachetto d'Acqui, a DOCG in its own right since 1996.
This specialty is known to old-school sommeliers as perhaps the best match for chocolate in the entire wine world (chocolate is a notoriously difficult pairing). Roughly 1,600 acres are under vine and these vineyards produce an average of 175,000 cases per year. In addition to the lightly sparkling frizzante version, lesser amounts of still wine and fully sparkling spumantes can be found.