Il Roncal, Friulano and Ribolla Gialla 2019

 Time for a return to the producer Il Roncal in Friuli in Italy. I have received two new vintages of the white wines Friulano and Ribolla Gialla from the vintage 2019.

Il Roncal is a wineproducer situtated in Cividale del Friuli in the Italian region of Friuli Venezia-Giulia close to the border of Slovenia. This wine producing area is know as Friuli Colli Orientali. Il Roncal own 20 hectars of vineyards on the Montebello hill. The winery name comes from a local Friulian expression meaning “estate on a hill cultivated in terraces” (also known as “ronchi”).Il Roncal was founded in 1986 by Roberto Morealo and is run today by his wife Martina Moreale. They produe several different wines and here I will focus on two white wines amde from two local grapes called Friulano and Ribolla Gialla.

The first wine is the Friulano from 2019. Friulano from Friuli-Venezia Giulia was known as Tocai Friulano until March 31, 2007 when the European Court of Justice prohibited of using the name Tocai in the name of the wine^. Since 2007 Tocai Friulano is merely known as “Friulano” in Friuli and is labeled as such.This is a quite aromatic grape. For the production no oak is used. The ABV is 13%. In the taste I get honey, minerals, pear and citrus. All the flavours are in a very good combination. Perfect for warmer weather or spicy food. Would love to try a sweet version of this grape.

The second wine is the Ribolla Gialla 2019 with an ABV of 12,5%. It is made from the grape Ribolla Gialla which is mostly grown in Friuli. In Slovenia this grape is known as Rebula. The first written documentation of the grape was in 1289 so it has been around for many years, In the taste I get per, elderberry and citrus. This is an excellent fresh and young Ribolla Gialla and an excellent vintage.

Il Roncal continues to show a high quality in their winemaking and so far all their wines have been very good to excellent. 

Two white wines from Friuli, Tonon and Guerra Albano

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.

Gradiscutta, wine producer from Friuli Venezia Giulia

For the next upcoming blogposts I will focus on wine from region Friuli Venezia Giulia in Italy. This region 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.
The indigenous grape Friulano was known as Tocai or Tocai Friulano until 2007 when the name had to change to due EU regulations. This grape has nothing to do with the Hungarian wine Tokaji.

When I visited Gradis'cutta one of many wines that I tasted was their wine Friulano of the vintage 2018 with an ABV of 12,5%. It is made of 100% Friulano grape. This wine is very fresh and crisp. In the taste I get tropical notes and citrus with some minerals. One day earlier I had tasted the 2017 vintage at a bar in Goriza and that vintage was very good also and that shows a good quality over the years. Highly recommended wine and from the wine tasting I had at Gradiscutta they have a very good quality for all the wines that I tasted. A very good producer from a relative unknown wineregion and if you have the chance, please visit them.

A review will come later for their sparkling wines which have interesting stories behind them.

Two white wine from Friuli Venezia Guilia, La Cricca and Les Enfants

Friuli Venezia Giulia is a beautiful region in the northeastern part of Italy. This region borders Slovenia and the white wines are not that famous as for example the white wines from South Tyrol.

The producer La Cricca is situated in Craeretto, a small village situated in Friuli. La Cricca is four people making wine and they say that their mission is to respect the heritage. The wine I have tasted is their white wine Friulano from 2016 with an ABV of 13%. This wine if from the Colli Orientali are which is a winemaking region near Udine. This vintage was of only 1322 bottles and the grape used is the native grape Friulano which has been cultivated in Friuli since 1600. This is a fruity wine with a long aftertaste. I get honey, pear and some citrus and flowers. A delightful wine.

Next up is the white wine Les Enfants from the producer Villa Russiz which is a big producer in Venzia Giulia. This wine is a blend of several grapes,  50 % Pinot Grigio, 25% Pinot Bianco, 20% Ribolla Gialla and 5% Sauvignon. This wine is fresh, crisp and with a taste of citrus, pear and some mineral. Yet another good white wine from Friuli Venezia Giulia.

Bambino Bianco and Tocai Friulano

Italy has many different grape varieties and many of them only grows in Italy. This time I have had the chance to try two, Bombino Bianco and Tocai Friulano.

The wine Marese from producer Rivera is made from the grape Bombino Bianco. It is from the DOC Bombino Bianco Castel Del Monte in Puglia. This grape is mostly grown in Puglia but can be found in several other regions in Italy. This wine were very nice to drink. Interesting and I have to try more of this grape.

The second wine I had the chance to try is the wine Friulano from producer Guerra Albano, whose winery Guerra Albano is located in the DOC Colli Orientali del Friuli area in Montina, near Cividale del Friuli. The wine is very strong and tastes like green apples, pear, grass some citrus and is very intense and fresh. Quite interesting wine and needs some food with the wine. The grape used for this wine is called Tocai Friulano. These wines were also called Tocai Friulano earlier but had to change the name due to name regulations of the EU to Friulano. This grape is mostly grown in Friuli Venezia Giuli and recently scientists have found out that the grape Sauvignon Vert is the same grape. For more information about this grape I recommend the book "Native Wine Grapes of Italy" by Ian D'Agata.