Viticulture in Friuli Venezia Giulia

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Viticulture in Friuli Venezia Giulia has been proven to have been going on since the Bronze Age , i.e. for 3,000 years. The growing region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia , mostly Friuli for short, lies between Austria, Slovenia and the Veneto plain. The capital of the region is Trieste . Although the region has historically been under variable influence and was often involved in acts of war, wine has been cultivated continuously since ancient times. Improved cellar methods such as cooled fermentation have made the area what is probably the best white wine region in Italy, although red wine is still grown. The sub-regions of Collio , Colli Orientali del Friuli , Isonzo and Carso produce the highest quality and longest lasting white wines. Despite the outstanding position, there is increasing competition in regions that have only recently been producing top-quality wines. Many winemakers have said goodbye to the international varieties and are increasingly replacing them with the old local ones, especially the Friulano . The greatest quality potential of Friuli lies in the autochthonous varieties .

Geography and climate

The Friuli Venezia Giulia region borders on Austria in the north, Slovenia in the east, the Adriatic Sea in the south and Veneto in the west . The capital of the region is the port city of Trieste . The slopes of the Julian Alps shield Friuli from cold winds from the mountains and from Russia, so the vines are safe from the dreaded late frosts .

The warm air currents from the Venetian lagoon ensure significantly higher temperatures than in the hinterland. This sandwich situation is a great advantage. The warm winds also ventilate the moisture from the vineyards. In Friuli it rains up to three times as much as in the high-precipitation German wine-growing regions. Most of the precipitation falls in winter and spring, so the vines are not damaged. Due to the hot summers, the winemakers usually harvest relatively early. In the better locations high up in the mountains there are changing small climates , the influence of which has not yet been fully clarified.

geology

Fifty million years ago Friuli was a sea ​​basin , on the bottom of which clay and silt were deposited, which gradually covered the coral reefs . With the geological formation of the Alps , the plain finally rose above sea level as limestone . These barren stone layers called ponca can be seen everywhere in the region. Due to the pressure of their own weight, the small-sized sands compacted , but the structures disintegrate again into small stones in the air. This makes the soil loose, mineral and poor in nutrients . All three properties are ideal for grapevines . Because they put their roots in the ground easily, do not stand in water, find moisture in dry phases, but have to laboriously fetch the scarce nutrients from the depths. In this way, they absorb many minerals that will later ensure high quality wines .

The soil is so loose that erosion causes the mountain ridges to crumble in a few years. Therefore, earlier than in other growing areas, the winemakers planted grass between the rows of vines , the roots of which stop erosion. The greening of rows of vines is now standard for good quality wines. At the foot of the mountains, most of the larger chunks have already been ground up and compacted into mud that, when dried, becomes so hard that the ground cannot be machined. Therefore only the terminal moraines around the wide plains offer sites for top wines. Friuli has nine sub-zones, of which the mountain regions of Collio , Colli Orientali, Isonzo and, for some years, Carso, produce the best wines. There are very different locations on the preferred slopes . If the rock is red, there is a significant amount of iron. Manganese and other minerals determine the blue soil. In the Collio and Colli Orientali del Friuli (COF) parts of clay and sandstone are represented. These are considered ideal because they usually produce medium-heavy wines with the right balance of acidity and alcohol .

In the west of the region there is a wide plain of alluvial soils in which rivers have deposited pebbles , i.e. silicate stones. Above all, better everyday wines, often Pinot Grigios , are produced there. Lighter wines are also produced between Palmanova and Aquileia , where sandy soils and larger wineries predominate.

statistics

Growing quality wines in Friuli
category Area
( ha )		 Wine production
( hl )		 Share
(%)
total 24,979 2,551,103 100
of which DOC 24,760 2,545,389 99.8
of which DOCG 219 5,714 0.2

There are three general origins (IGT) in Friuli: Venezia Giulia, delle Venezie and Alto Livenza with a total of 6737 hectares. In 2014, a total of ten DOC origins occupied 24,760 hectares. Four growing areas ( Colli Orientali del Friuli , Picolit , Lison , Ramandolo and Rosazzo ) cover 219 hectares and have DOCG status.

The ten DOC wines

Carso

Carso is a small area of ​​only 57 hectares on a narrow limestone mountain range that stretches from Gorizia to Trieste. A large part of the area is in Slovenia. Here, some small top winemakers who are highly regarded in the area produce their own grape varieties that are not grown anywhere else in Friuli. Wine capital is the provincial capital Trieste. The most important grape varieties are Vitovska , Terrano , (both autochthonous), Malvasia and Cabernet Sauvignon. The important local grape varieties Friulano and Ribolla Gialla are not found here.

Collio Goriziano

The Collio Goriziano, mostly just Collio, has been recognized as a DOC zone since 1968 and is the most important wine-growing region in Friuli. A large number of top winemakers at home and abroad are renowned among connoisseurs for long-lived white wines , which make up more than 80% of the 1262 hectares of cultivation area. Mineral ponca floors of marine origin predominate. The main town is called Cormons . The region's specialty is the autochthonous Ribolla Gialla grape from the vineyards around Oslavia and Gorizia . In terms of quantity, the most important grape varieties are Pinot Grigio , Sauvignon Blanc and Friulano . Ribolla Gialla is an important image carrier.

Collio Bianco: The Collio Gorizano shares the Collio Bianco with its neighboring regions, Colli Orientali and Isonzo . A total of twelve grape varieties are permitted for the cuvée , which can play out their individual strengths. The winemakers can freely decide on the proportions. In cultivation, they benefit from some very valuable locational advantages. This creates wines that are unique in their depth and complexity. If white wines in Italy are traditionally bottled and sold as quickly as possible, the Collio Bianco increases noticeably when it has more time in the cellar. The white cuvées have the extraordinary ability to mature in the bottle for many years and develop increasingly complex aromas. A high acid content inhibits oxidation and other decomposition processes. However, Collio Bianco has comparatively little acidity. So little that winegrowers are sometimes concerned about the classification of their wines if they just barely reach the acid values ​​specified in the statutes.

Friuli-Annia

Friuli-Annia was recognized as a DOC zone in 1995, but with 21 hectares is a small, less significant area with sandy soils.

Friuli Aquileia

Friuli Aquileia is the name of the historical growing area in the vicinity of the city of Aquileia . Large companies mainly produce everyday wines on 455 hectares of sandy soils. There are few known producers. Aquileia is the wine capital and the DOC zone was recognized in 1975. Main grape varieties: Refosco , Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot.

Friuli Colli Orientali

With 1750 hectares (2014), Colli Orientali del Friuli is a large growing area with vineyards in the hills , where many top vintners have their locations, and the plain, from which predominantly everyday wines come. In terms of quality, the Colli Orientali are the second most important area after the Collio . The politically wanted sub-zones Cialla and Rosazzo are of no importance in the market. The DOCG sweet wines Ramandolo and Picolit also grow within the borders of the Colli Orientali del Friuli . Adjacent to the Collio, the best soils are mineral ponca layers of marine origin. The wine capital of the area is called Cividale del Friuli . The most important grape varieties are Friulano, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio. The two red, local varieties Schioppettino and Pignolo are also important for the image .

Friuli Grave

Recognized as a DOC zone in 1970, Friuli Grave with 2380 hectares is the largest area in terms of area with vineyards in the plain, which provide reliable everyday wines and some top wines. Grave means pebble and this type of rock predominates in the alluvial soil. The main towns are Pordenone and the city of Udine . Pinot Grigio and Merlot are the most important grape varieties.

Friuli Isonzo

The third most important growing area is Friuli Isonzo and was recognized as a DOC zone in 1974. It also borders the Collio. Most of the vines are on alluvial soil in the plain. Still, some of the best wines in the 906 hectare region come from here. Friuli Isonzo is divided into the Rive Alte and Rive Giare zones, the right and left sides of the Isonzo River. The main town is called Gradisca d'Isonzo , the main grape varieties are Pinot Grigio, Friulano, Sauvignon Blanc and Merlot.

Friuli Latisana

With 68 hectares, Friuli Latisana is not a very large and inconspicuous cultivation area with sandy soils, but was recognized as a DOC zone in 1995.

Lison Pramaggiore

Of the total of 290 hectares of the Lison Pramaggiore , only 41 hectares are in Friuli. It is of little importance.

Prosecco

In 2014, a total of 2,141,394 hectoliters of wine with the Prosecco appellation were produced from 17,490 hectares - together with the Veneto region . This includes still wines , sparkling wines ( Spumante ) and sparkling wines ( Frizzante ).

The four DOCG wines

Colli Orientali del Friuli Picolit

The Picolit is a sweet wine. In 2014, 383 hectoliters of the wine were produced on just 48 hectares.

Lison DOCG

Ramandolo

The Ramandolo is a sweet wine. In 2014, 1078 hectoliters of the wine were produced on just 40 hectares.

Rosazzo

In 2014, 374 hectoliters of the wine were produced on just 28 hectares.

Grape varieties

Friuli has a wide range of grape varieties for a single region, including many high quality. Nevertheless, the Friulian winemakers had to learn painfully in recent years that they had to share their outstanding position. For a while these wines were pretty much the best that Europe had to offer as a white wine after the high-priced French. But top white wines now also come from Germany , Austria and South Tyrol. This is precisely why more and more local patriots are saying goodbye to the international varieties and replacing them with the old local ones, especially Friulano.

White grape varieties

13 white grape varieties are permitted in Friuli, many of them high quality. Their wines are complex and surprisingly storable.

International grape varieties

Pinot Grigio , Pinot Bianco , Sauvignon Blanc , Chardonnay , Riesling , Gewürztraminer , Müller-Thurgau

Local (autochthonous) grape varieties

Friulano , Ribolla Gialla , Picolit , Malvasia Istriana , Verduzzo Friulano , Glerá

Red grape varieties

Almost half of all Friuli wines are red, although the region is little known for it. Most are good quality everyday wines. The international varieties Cabernet Franc , Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot bring the best results. But there are also a number of autochthonous grape varieties: Refosco , Pignolo , Schiopettino , Tazzalenghe , Terrano . Usually they are developed as average qualities. However, there is still untapped quality potential in the grape varieties. In view of the current white wine trend for the region, it is not foreseeable when winemakers will put more energy into the red varieties.

International grape varieties

Merlot , Cabernet Franc , Cabernet Sauvignon

Autochthonous grape varieties

Refosco , Pignolo , Schioppettino , Tazzelenghe , Terrano

Wine types

Dolce

The winemakers in Friuli also produce sweet wines in various compositions . The best known is the picolit .

Sparkling wines and sparkling wines

Carbonated wines are mostly made from the Glera variety. Such wines traditionally come from the region around the town of Prosecco, near Trieste. For some years now, the Ribolla Gialla variety has also been used increasingly for sparkling wine.

history

The oldest grape seeds in Friuli were found in the alluvial sand under pile dwellings from the Bronze Age . The first winegrowers had chosen the areas on the plain that were much easier to work on. The region was popular with retired professional soldiers among the ancient Romans , who were perhaps the first to recognize the connection between location and wine . Deserved ex-legionaries were entitled to a rectangular parcel, preferably with elm and mulberry trees. They let the liana plant Vitis vinifera climb it.

Like so many ancient achievements , the vineyards of Friuli also fell victim to the ignorant Middle Ages. With the migration of peoples , the Lombards came to Friuli. The tribe from what is now East Germany ruined the wine cultures for centuries. It was not until the late Middle Ages that industrious Benedictine monks cleared the wild-growing forests and recultivated the vineyards. You seem to have had success with it. In 1307 business was so good that the government of Gorizia , which is still one of the main towns in Friuli today, imposed a wine tax. It is not known whether the measure had a fiscal effect. In any case, it wasn't long before the administration reported a general drinking problem. More and more drunks stumbled through the city streets.

The scientific advances in the Renaissance probably also benefited viticulture in Friuli. From ancient times to modern times , Friuli was often contested. Romans and barbarians faced each other on the border between the Alps and the Adriatic . Conquerors from the north were looking for access to the Mediterranean, those who came from the south wanted to secure the passage to the Balkans . The name Friuli Venezia Giulia reflects the history of the region with its changing alliances and often shifted borders. Friuli refers to the Friulani who were the first to colonize the region. The area now includes the provinces of Pordenone and Udine . Venezia Giulia is the name of the eastern provinces of Gorizia and Trieste , which are traditionally connected to the Republic of Veneto .

The introduced from abroad in the 19th century pests such as phylloxera and diseases such as powdery mildew and downy mildew ( Peronospora ) also left in the Friuli wine growing its mark, but the indigenous varieties were less resistant . The century was a wine-growing tragedy for Friuli, especially for the part dominated by Venice. In the area administered by the Habsburg monarchy , especially in today's province of Gorizia, viticulture was able to make better use of the more efficient state structures, as the public administration was open and supportive of the requirements of the peasant class and the entrepreneurs. This was the decisive factor in setting up the Friulian nurseries. The Austrian administration was able to fall back on the experience of oenological institutes such as Klosterneuburg .

The preferred recommended white wines were then especially Sauvignon Blanc , Pinot Bianco ( Pinot Blanc ) and Pinot Grigio ( Pinot Gris ). Of the French red wine varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon , Cabernet Franc and Pinot Nero (late or Pinot Noir ) were preferred , but not Merlot . This variety from Bordeaux is now the main cultivation variety , together with the white Friulano and Pinot Grigio .

The conflicts of the 20th century hit the region with incomparable violence. During the First World War , twelve of the bloodiest material battles raged here. Several hundred thousand soldiers died in the fighting between Italy and Austria-Hungary in barrage, poison gas attacks, mine throwers and typhoid. Bones, rusted belts and bayonets of these poor devils can still be found in some places today. In the so-called Isonzo battles , which in the end were not decisive for the war, mountains were blown off the peaks and Gorizia was badly destroyed.

The Collio - or " Brda " as the larger part of the area in Slovenia is called - could not be divided. During the Cold War , Friulian winemakers chugged their tractors across the death line to work their vineyards. Every evening they had to show their passports to heavily armed cold warriors to return behind the Iron Curtain. In the post-war period, massive agricultural subsidies gave viticulture some breathing space and technical progress. When wooden barrels were still standard worldwide, the first cement tanks were poured in Friuli. Until the mid-1960s, Friuli was a red wine region with the main grape variety Merlot .

The technology of fermentation in clean steel tanks under exclusion of air , which was to revolutionize the entire Italian wine world, was first used here and made the high-tech wine region a leader in white wine as early as the 1970s. The vines twined along horizontal wires, on which growth and yield could be optimally regulated. With the growing international interest in quality wine in the 1980s, Friuli became known and the wine industry experienced a boom.

However, the red wine trend of the coming years meant the end of this phase. While Barolo , Chianti and Super Tuscans en vogue were and came up international white wines from Chardonnay trend places like, and Sauvignon Blanc, the Friuli was dusty as something and disappeared from public consciousness. In addition, the prices were already impressive compared to Pinot Grigio from Veneto. The money from the first boom flowed into innovations: even better planting material, meticulous vineyard work and state-of-the-art cellar technology. Wines with a lot of fruit were a first counter-movement to the dominant style of France, where such primary aromas were disdainfully dismissed.

In Collio and the neighboring cultivation areas there are few large estates and only a few cooperatives . The majority of vintners make their wines on family ownership, often for generations. This constellation with competent winemakers who have capital and the ability to make independent decisions is the ideal breeding ground for innovations in viticulture. The region has seen changes that have not happened anywhere else in centuries.

Terms on many wine labels such as Klin, Col Disôre, Pomédes or Segrè are Furlan , the local language that is almost more similar to Catalan than Italian and is also spoken on the Slovenian side of the border. The exchange between the Collio winemakers in both countries is lively.

Others

In the triangular monastery of Santa Maria in Valle, south of the market square of Cividale del Friuli , over a thousand years old, there is a Romanesque frieze on which climbing vines and thick ripe grapes are carved from the stone. It's the only one in the world. In 2000 the consortium hired none other than Oliviero Toscani for an advertising campaign. The star photographer, who in his work had made advertising photos of people with HIV and anorexics, among others, placed a Collio Bianco in front of a beautiful bare breast. It belongs to a colored model who confesses to Friulano: "The only white one I love."

The hard dialect that the Friulians give their Italian is difficult to understand, even for the locals, especially since it differs from village to village. Many people prefer to speak Friulano, Slovenian , Cimbrian or ancient variants of German anyway . All of these languages ​​exist in Friuli.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ As of 2009: Guida ai vini del Friuli Venezia Giulia 2011, p. 29 ff.
  2. ↑ a b c Viticulture in Figures 2014 , (PDF, Italian), on federdoc.com