Il Roncal, wine from Friuli, part 3

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.

Il Roncal, wine from Friuli part 2, sparkling wines

Time for the second part about the wines from producer Il Roncal in Friuli, Italy, close to the border of Slovenia. This time my focus is on their sparkling wines.

The first sparkling wine is the Aurerum Ribolla Gialla Brut. For this sparkling wine the first fermentation is done in stainless steel tanks for 8-10 days. After that the wine ferments in pressure tanks for 180 days until the pressure reaches 6 bar, then it is bottled. The ABV for the bottle I have is 12%. In the taste I get citrus and some apple with brioche. This is a nice dry sparkling wine that goes well with fish for example or just as an aperitivo.

The second sparkling wine is the Argenteum Extra Dry. For this sparkling wine Il Roncal uses 50% Chardonnay and 50% Ribolla Gialla. The first fermentation is done in stainless steel tanks for 8-10 days. After that the wine ferments in pressure tanks for 60 days until the pressure reaches 6 bar, then it is bottled. For this wine I get a lot of brioche, apple and citrus and the mouthfeel is very dry. Yet another good sparkling wine from Il Roncal. May be too dry for some people.

The last sparkling wine is the Roseum Demi Sec which is a sparkling rose wine. The grape used for this wine is 100% Schioppettino, a rare red wine grape from Friiuli. For this wine wine they do the same fermentation and pressurisation as the Ribolla Gialla brut. I get a taste if rasperry, strawberry and some citrus. A very good rose sparkling with a very good structure. It went very well together with salmon and herring.

The region Friuli Venezia-Giulia is not known for their sparkling wine but it is a regions that produces very good sparkling wine. But it is hard to find it outside of Friuli Venezia-Giulia.