The region Friuli Venezia Giulia in Italy borders to the east Slovenia and to the north Austria. This region is known for their white wine and one famous region here is the Collio area which is in the north-east area of Friuli Venezia Giulia and it is quite a hilly area bordering Slovenia. In the photo below the border to Slovenia is about 2km away.

During spring 2019 I visited the producer Gradis´cutta. Gradis'cutta is a producer which have 20 hectares of vineyards in the communes of Gorizia, Capriva del Friuli and Dolegna del Collio. 

The locations of the vineyards are at different elevations and therefore they have many different growing conditions for indigenous grapes, such as Ribolla and Friulano, and international grapes such as Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot. Gradis'cutta produces a multitude of wines, from white to red to sprakling wines.

 

 

In this blogpost I will focus on their white wine Collio Rierva. This wine was produced for the first time in 1999, at their winery, This Collio riserva, is vinified exclusively with the indigenous varieties, Ribolla Gialla, Malvasia and Friulano.  The fermentation is don in large wooden casks (botti) of 10 hectoliters in size. After almost one age of ageing in the bottis itis tranferred to bottle and is aged for at least 15 more months., hence the name riserva.

The vineyards in which these grapes are grown are located in Bukova at Monte Calvario and in the vineyards of Ruttars, a frazione of Dolegna del Collo, at an altitude of 120 to 180 meters (400 to 600 feet) above sea level.

The vinatge is 2015 and the ABV is 13%. A very nice smell of white fruit on the nose.Taste of almosnd, grey pear and some grapefruit and the wine also has a very good body. A long aftertaste in the mouth. A lovely wine that is good as a food wine but also to drink on its won.

 

 

 

 

Feudi Di San Gregorio part 3

For the last part on Feudi Di San Gregorio I will focus on one Aglianico wine from them. The wine is Dal Re and is made from 100% Aglianico which is considered one of great red wine grapes of Italy. It is mostly grown in Southern Italy because Aglianico needs a long maturing period and is normally picked in November which is quite late for a grape. This grape tends to do well in Volcanic soils which can be found in Campania and Basilicata.  The Dal Re is an Irpinia Aglianico DOC wine. It is aged six months in French barriques and the rest of the time in stainless steel vats. Before being sold it is then aged six months in the bottle. This wine is part of their more exclusive line for the best restaurants and wine bars. The vintage is 2016 and the ABV is 13,5%.

The taste is of black currants, coffee, blackberry, dark cherry and nicely integrated tannins. A very good wine. Feudi Di San Gregorio is a big producer in Campania and they know how to produce good wines and I love that they focus on the indigenous grapes of Campania.

 

Feudi Di San Gregorio part 2

For the part two of Feudi Di San Gregorio I will try two wines, one Greco Di Tufo and one Sirica wine. First up is the Greco Di Tufo wine. It is a white wine and the name Greco says that the grape is the Greco grape. Many times one also use Greco Bianco to differentiate it from Greco Nero, but the Greco di Tufo is an area of growing only the white Greco grape in Campania. The name Tufo comes from a rock formed by volcanic ash. The Greco Di Tufo from Feudi Di San Gregorio contains 100% Greco grapes and the vintage is 2018. It is stored for 4-6 months in steel tanks before being bottled. This is a very elegant wine. A taste if minerals, apple and grapefruit. Very good and I think that this wine can be stored for a couple of more years to bring out some extra flavours but it is good to drink now.

Next wine is the Sirica red wine from 2015. Sirica is a rare grape from Campania. In 2005 Feudi di San Gregorio found three very old, tree-sized vines in an Aglianico vineyard in Taurasi. They weren’t Aglianico, it was a mystery, until DNA analysis established that these were descendants of Sirica – the only ones known so far. Now Feudi Di San Gregorio has three hectars of Sirica growing. So a quite rare wine. This wine has been aged for 12 months in french barriques of medium toast. This is a very well integrated wine with a taste of blueberry, plum, cherry and some tannins rounding out the wine. A very good wine yet again and a very interesting wine, Reminds me of Teroldego which is a relative of this grape.

Feudi Di San Gergorio, part 1

This will be the first blogpost on the wines of Feudi Di San Gregorio. Feudi Di San Gregorio is a wine producer from Campania in Italy. They are situated in the area known as Irpinia which is the old historical name of Province of Avellino. This area is divided into Taurusi, Greco Di Tufo and Fiano Di Avellino. All area that are famous for their wine production.

The Feudi Di San Gregorio was founded in 1986 by two Irpinian families. This winery has focused on quality production and also on the native grapes of Campania such as Falanghina, Greco and Aglianico. They are quite big with 300 hectars of vineyards. For this part, I will try two wines one white and one red.

The Albente wine from 2019 is made of the white grape Falanghina. Falanghina is a grape that went almost extinct but has made a big comeback in recent years. The wine is stored for four months in steel tanks before being bottled. The taste is of pear, tropical fruits and citrus. It is very fresh and aromatic and is very good. Goes very well with fish due toe the acidity.

The Trigaio wine from 2018 is made of 100% Aglianico grape. I will write more about this grape in the next part but this red grape is one of the famous grapes of South Italy. Also this wine has been aged for four months in steel tanks before being bottled. On the nose I get a nice red fruit smell.  In the taste I get black currant, plums and some sour cherry. A bit lighter Aglianico with a lot of fruit character. Nice.

Remole biancoand Ripa Delle Mandorle, two white wine from Tuscany

 Frescobaldi is a producer from Tuscany in Italy and I have waited for a long time to try one of their wines. The Remole bianco is from their Remole estates in the middle of Tuscany, it is one of many estates that they have. The wine is from 2018 and the ABV is 12%. The grapes are Vermentino and Trebbiano. The maturation was done for four months in stainless steel. This is a crisp and fresh wine with a good nose. The taste is of pear, apple, citrus and some tropical fruit. A nice easy going wine.

Next is the white wine Ripa Delle Mandorle from the producer John Matta in Tuscany. It is of the vintage 2019 and the ABV is 12%. I get pear, aplle and some lemon and citrus in the taste. Quite light and easy drinking but nothing to remember.

Basilisco, Teodosio Aglianico Del Vulture

With this review I will start looking into the wines from Feudi di San Gregorio. But first we have the producer Basilisco In Basilicata that is owned by Feudi di San Gregorio. Basilicata is not a famous wine region and finding wines from there in Sweden is rare. Basilisco was founded in early 1990 and from 2011 it is run by the Campania producer Feudi di San Gregorio. 

The wine Teodosio Aglianico del Vulture is named after an Roman emperor and the name Basilisco means little king in Greek The Vulture is an extinct volcano in Basilicata. The vintage is 2016 and the ABV is 13%. It is made from 100% Aglianico grapes that is grown at 500 meters above sea level near Barile in Basilicata province of Italy. The wine is aged for 10-12 months in French oak barriques. The taste is quite strong, I get oak, black currants, sour cherry and some plum. Quite tight at the beginning and it almost feels like a 15% ABV wine. This wine needs some air to open up an is quite dry, because of the tannins. Good to drink now but I think 2-3 more years of ageing will bring out some more complexity.

Galaverna brut from Ca' De Lion

Ca' De Lion is a producer of wine from Asti in Piemonte, Italy. This company was founded by Luigi Ghione in 1871. They produce everything from white wines to red wines and even some sparkling wine. One of their sparkling wines is Galvaverna which is a Piemontese word. To produce this wine they use the secondary fermentation with Martinotti method (Charmat). This is a method where the bubbles are created while the wine ferments inside a steel tank.

The wine has a taste of pear, brioche with a quite high acidity which makes the wine work well with food. However, the high acidity may put some people off this wine. I recommend serving this wine with food and not as an aperitif. 

Leacock's Medium Rich Bual aged 15 years

Leacock's Medium Rich Bual aged 15 years is a madeira wine from the Portugese island of Madeira far out in the Atlantic.

Leacock's is part of the Madeira wine company, this company also includes Blandy's and Cossart Gordon and is run by the family of Blandy's. The Leacock's 15 year old Bual is not for sale at the moment as I bought it several years ago and it has been replaced by a Tinta Negra 15 year old medium rich in the wines from the company.  

Bual is one of the noble grapes that is grown on the island of Maderia. It is used to make medium rich sweet maderia wine. Only Malmsey maderia wines are sweeter. 

The wine has a high ABV of 19%. In the nose I get a smell of nuts. The taste is of raisin, some tobacco, caramel with some burnt fudge. Quite a long aftertaste. This is one wine that slowly grows on you the longer you keep sipping on it. 

Bepin De Eto, Greccio Rosso 2012

 Three years ago I drank Greccio Rosso of the vintage 2012 for the first time from producer Bepin De Eto in Veneto, Italy. That time I thought that the wine was good but it probably needed some more ageing.  The Greccio Rosso is a Colli Di Conegliano DOCG. The grapes used for the wine are Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Marzemino. So mostly international grapes. The wine is then stored in wood for 12 months before being bottled. The extra years of ageing has brought out some more complex  and integrated flavours. Red currant, black currant, plum, some oak and tobacco. Excellent.

Cantina D'Isera, Teroldego 2018

 In Italy there are so many grape varieties and in the northern region of Trentino - Alto Adige there are many that are indigenous to that region. When I hear the grape name Teroldego I always think of Trentino - Alto Adige. And the origin of this grape is clouded in mystery but some its relatives are Syrah and Pinot Nero.

 Cantina D'Isera is a producer from this area and they make a wine with 100% Teroldego  with the IGT typification Vigneti Delle Dolomiti. The vintage is 2019 and I have tried the 2013 vintage earlier on. The nose is of red deep fruits. The taste for the 2019 vintage is of red currants, red cherry and just a hint of black pepper and some cinnamon in the taste. very nice and smooth.  

 

Manzone Rosserto Langhe Rossese Bianco 2016

Rossese Bianco is a rare grape that is grown around the communes of Roddino and Sino in the Langhe area of Piemonte in Italy. The producer Manzone is credited for saving this grape from extinction. From 2012 the grape has the DOC Langhe Rossese bianco denomination. The harvest is done in the first week of October. The wine is aged for 12 months in 500 litre barrels on the leese. I find this wine to be quite full bodied with a taste of pear, grapefruit, minerals and butter. A nice aftertaste of citrus and pear. Very good and interesting. Will handle some ageing very well also. A n excellent foodwine and I am quite lucky that someone decided to save the Rossese Bianco grapes.

Planeta Chardonnay 2015

Chardonnay is a grape that grown all over the world but producer Planeta in Sicily has been doing a Chardonnay that should be unmistakeably Sicilian.It is a Sicilian Menfi DOC wine that consists of 100% Chardonnay grapes. The grapes comes from Cantina Ulmo in the south west of Sicily. The altitude of the vineyard is 250 meters above sea level. Time of harvest is in the beginning of September. The maturation is done in oak barriques. So how is the wine? In the nose I get a lot of white fruits. In the taste i get butter and apricot, a very full bodied Chardonnay which can handle ageing very well. A very special wine that may not be for everyone that expects a younger fresher wine, instead what you get here is a more mature wine which is very good.