I’ve just returned from a fantastic week in the Parma region of Italy. Although my main reason for being there was to play several concerts with my band Cactus Rose, I took the chance to sample the neighborhood fare especially the wines of the region. The promoter who i was dealing with had previously told me that in this region of Italy, light effervescent wines both white - bianco and red - rosso are the preferred accompaniment to local foods and this turned out to be the case everywhere we went.

Red frizzante wines particularly Lambrusco are quaffed here in such quantity that they're jokingly termed as Italian Coca Cola and to my great surprise they work rather well. Maybe it’s the climate - with an average temperature which is between 30 - 35 degrees c in the week I was in Parma - a lightweight and refreshing vino certainly is the order of the day. If you're drinking white wine you will generally get asked if you would like Prosecco or Still wine and at festivals and celebrations of local food like the Tortelli ( a delicious ravioli style stuffed pasta served with plenty of Parmesan cheese) festival we were taken to as guests there's often no choice. It’s Lambrusco or Prosecco and that’s it. The wines also are locally produced so there is little point in recommending a particular brand, as you would probably struggle to find it outside of the local region.

Another highlight of our tour was a gig we played at an amazing restaurant/venue just outside of Parma in Santa Lucia di Medesano. The owner Alberto Cataldi and his wife have recently quit the pressure of running a restaurant in Parma itself for the good life in the mountains at La Cantina dei Suanati, which they run together. We were treated to some amazing aged Parma Ham and Salami with a range of serious cheeses from the area and everything was washed down with many jugs of Lambrusco served in traditional glazed clay cups - Alberto - a musician himself joked about Italian Coca Cola. As the sun went down and the fireflies danced in the trees around the Cantina Lambrusco was the perfect tipple and we had a very memorable evening. Be sure to go there if you are ever in the area.

In short, you may have some negative opinions on Lambrusco I know I did. In the right setting however and with the right food and company this is an easy wine to drink and with a typical alcohol content of around 11% you can have a few without worrying too much about hangovers. It’s a perfect expression of all that’s great about Italy and will bring you a little taste of The Mountains on a sunny day anywhere. I’m going to stock up! You will find a wealth of Italian wines online including Prosecco, Motepuluciano and Lambrusco and maybe some local gems from the Parma region. A great place to search for those is at http://www.wineday.co.uk which provides 1000s of wines from a number of vendors.