Friuli region in Italy is a relative unknown producer of high quality white wines. From the Friuli Grave DOC in the province of Pordenone comes a sauvignon wine from the producer Tonon. This winery was founded in 1936 by Pietro Tonon. The winery itself is situated in the north eastern part of Veneto very close to the border of Friuli. Their Sauvignon wine is the only wine they make with grapes from Friuli, otherwise they are mostly focused on for example prosecco wines and other wines from Veneto. The Sauvignon wine is fermented slowly for 15-20 days and then the wine is stored in tanks until bottled. The vintage tasted is the 2016.
In the taste grass, papaya and some gooseberry. Quite a soft Sauvignon, perfect for warm days. Could be the slow fermentation that keeps it under control.
Guerra Albano is a winemaking company in the Friuli Colli Orientali DOC in the Montina village. They have a wine called Friuliano. This grape is an autochthonous grape from Friuli. This grape was know previoulsy as Tocai Fruliano before EU regulations regarding names came into use. In Slovenia this grape is known known as Jakot, whih is Tokaj spelled backwards. The vintage of this wine is 2018. This wine is quite mineralic with some grapefruit and melon. It is quite an austere vintage and works perfectly together with fish. It seems that Guerra Albono makes quite strong Friulianos.
This is the third part about the wine from producer Il Roncal in Friuli, Italy. This time I look into a sauvignon wine and two red wines made from indigenous wines.
The Sauvignon wines that is produced in some parts of Italy such as Friuli and Trentino-Alto Adige is quite different from other Sauvignon wines that I have tasted. In Chile for example I get a lot of gooseberry and they are not very balanced. While the Sauvigno wines from Friuli for example I find much more balanced. The Il Roncal Sauvignon is from 2017 and has an ABV of 12,5%. The grapes are pressed and fermented normally and then transferred into a steel tank for three months of refinement. I get a crisp and fresh aromatic nose, one can say that it is a Sauvignon just from the nose. The taste is very fresh and crisp with notes of gooseberry, tropical fruit, some grass and melon. A very good and balanced sauvignon.
The next wine is the red wine Pignolo from 2011 and the ABV is 14%. Pignolo is an autochthonous grape variety in Friuli. The name Pignolo comes from the Friulian dialect pignul. The grapes undergo a maceration period of 15 days. Then the wine is transferred into small French oak barriques for 48 months. Finally it is transferred into steel tanks for 5 months and then bottled and stored for six months before it can be sold. That is quite a long period of at least five years. So how is the taste? I get dark fruits especially black currants with well integrated oak and tannins after nine years. Quite complex and very good.
The last wine is yet another autochthonous grape from Friuli. It is the grape Schioppettino and the vintage of this bottle is 2015. The maceration period is 15 years. Then the wine is stored in second cycle barriques for 24 months. Then it is bottled and lies on the bottle for 3 months before being sold. On the nose I get a lot of black fruits such as blueberry. In the taste there is also a lot of black fruits such as blueberry, blackberry and plum. After some time also some black currant appears. It is not a heavy wine but a medium balanced wine. A very good wine also.
Il Roncal has several more wines than the ones I have tasted in this three part series but these wines will probably wait until I have a chance to visit the producer in Friuli.
Finally s video of Martina Moreala talking about some of the wines of Il Roncal can be seen below, it is in Italian.
While being away on business i had the chance to try two different white wines. One from Chile and one from Italy.
Wine from Chile is not normally on my menu but it is nice to try new things. this wine is from producer Errazuriz and is from 2013 and the grape used is Sauvignon blanc. I had a couple of Sauvignon blanc of the years and they have tasted nice but this wine tasted all gooseberry and not much else. Not very nice to drink for me. I have had better.
Better is the wine Da Luca from Siciliy.It is made from pinot grigio and chardonnay grapes and is from 2012. It has a taste of apples, pears and some citrus and with a long finish. Decent wine.
Each time I visit Bologna I make my way to Trattoria Tony to see if my tagliatelle al ragu is as good as theirs. For the food I had a bottle of Sauvignon from Vallona, Castello Serravalle. Tasted strong and sharp as a Sauvignon should. Went very well with the tagliatelle al ragu.And still Tonys ragu is better than mine. As a secondi I had mixed boiled meats with potatopuree. The wine was very good with this dish also. Good wine and a wonderful evening at Tonys.
