TRAVEL: FRIULI Map: Maggie Nelson Maggie Map: My perfect day in Friuli Morning After breakfast at the peaceful Colli di Poianis agriturismo*, drive 15 minutes into Cividale del Friuli. Above: perched on a ravine, Cividale del Friuli is Perched on a ravine created by the The Decanter travel guide to the perfect stop before exploring Colli Orientali river Natisone, Cividale is crammed FACT FILE full of medieval history, plus some Selected DOCG/ solely for sweet wines, made from indigenous excellent shopping opportunities. DOCs & top grapes variety, Verduzzo Friulano. Energised by a mid-morning Vineyards at San Floriano DOCG café in Cividale’s main square, drive Italy A perfect food match to Ronchi di Cialla, set in one of the incredible vista of rolling hills and Ramandolo 60ha**; Friuli, Verduzzo Friulano Just as the Bordelais prefer to drink Sauternes Colli Orientali’s prettiest valleys. vineyards before you is a while the northerly Alpine part bordering as an aperitif, so Friulians know that the You’ll meet the Rapuzzi family, the patchwork of Italy and Slovenia. DOC Stretching from the Alps to the Adriatic, Friuli is home to rolling Austria is decidedly Germanic. honeyed, mildly tannic, high-acid Ramandolo saviours of Schioppettino from Grave 2,273ha**; For visitors seeking outstanding food and goes best with the local Prosciutto di San obscurity and producers of some Evening and overnight Pinot Grigio, Merlot, hills, picturesque villages and a wine, and beautiful countryside, the region is Daniele (similar to Prosciutto di Parma) or of the best wines in the region. After a scenic 30-minute drive, Sauvignon Blanc wealth of boutique wine a paradise. Friuli doesn’t get overrun with with Montasio cheese. I Comelli is one of the finish with dinner at Terra & Vini Lunch Collio 1,319ha*; producers. Simon Woolf shares indiscriminate tourists, which has helped 30 producers in the Consorzio Tutela Vini (www.terraevini.it), an osteria in Pinot Grigio, preserve a sense of authenticity and character Ramandolo with excellent wines and a From here it’s a short hop to the Brazzano which also acts as front Sauvignon Blanc, tips on how best to plan a trip that is harder to find in Tuscany or Piedmont. peaceful agriturismo near the winery (info@ village of Prepotto, to refuel at of house for world-famous winery, Chardonnay It also offers an unbeatable combination of icomelli.com). Trattoria da Mario*. Your only Livio Felluga. Although wines by Corners Images Corners Colli Orientali I SUSPect it can be a bit slow if you’re a news dramatic mountain scenery, rolling vineyard Ramandolo DOCG is contained within the challenge is to exercise enough the glass are limited to Felluga, the - 1,208ha**; Friulano, reporter in Friuli. One of last year’s bigger vistas and idyllic Adriatic coastline. dog-leg-shaped Colli Orientali DOC, which restraint to justify dinner later on. full list offers a varied selection from stories was a scandal alleging the presence of The best wine areas are concentrated stretches down to the plains around Cormons. Friuli Collio, as does the ensuite Sauvignon Blanc, Afternoon Merlot illegal additives in Sauvignon Blanc. Friuli- around the southeastern part of the region, Colli Orientali’s green, sweeping valleys are enoteca. The food is traditional, Venezia Giulia, to use the full and rather especially in the hilly sub-regions of Collio and home to myriad small, quality-focused wineries After lunch, drive 30 minutes to uncomplicated and quite exquisite. Isonzo 712ha**; confusing name (Venice is not part of the Colli Orientali (collio means hill in Italian). and several different wine styles. Around the San Floriano, high in the Collio hills. If you’re feeling very lazy, Terra Pinot Grigio, region), is a peaceful, genteel corner of Italy, Neighbouring Isonzo valley and Friuli Carso village of Prepotto, the rediscovered red Il Carpino (www.ilcarpino.com) is & Vini has well-appointed rooms Sauvignon Blanc, lacking big-ticket tourist attractions and are also important. Udine, Cormons and variety Schioppettino is king. Ronchi di Cialla one of a clutch of small producers above the restaurant, but only a Chardonnay generally more concerned with agriculture Gorizia are attractive bases for a wine-themed ([email protected]) produces elegant, around the village who make five-minute stroll away is the Carso 58ha*; and viticulture. trip. All have a certain mitteleuropa elegance, refined wines from this fascinating peppery ‘orange wines’. Franco’s tasting charming agriturismo Zorzon Malvasia Istriana, It wasn’t ever thus. Modern-day Italy’s most and plenty of diversions beyond wine. variety, not to mention a standout white room is the perfect place for a (www.zorzon.it). The rooms and Vitovska, Sauvignon northeasterly quarter has been disputed and Planning a hypothetical north-to-south blend. Antico Broilo ([email protected]) masterclass on long skin maceration. apartments back onto jaw- Blanc fought over since antiquity – by Romans, tour, you’d start in the northerly DOCG area of and La Viarte ([email protected]) also A few minutes away is the town droppingly beautiful Collio * 2012 vineyard Byzantines, Venetians and Habsburgs. Ramandolo, a set of dramatic hills which produce excellent Schioppettino. The latter of Oslavia. Try to catch dusk as you vineyards and a small church. surface ha Although most visible scars have healed, the starts to feel increasingly Alpine as it has an attractively located tasting room ascend the war memorial tower ** DOC vineyard ha region remains noticeably cross-cultural: approaches neighbouring Austria. Centred overlooking vineyards. just outside the town. The * For more detail, turn to page 95 Slavic influences permeate the easterly areas, around the Roman town of Nimis, the DOCG is Two cult producers not to be forgotten ➢ Fantuz/SIME/4 Olimpio Images; Quirtmair/Getty Walter Photographs: 44 | Italy 2016 • DECANTER DECANTER • Italy 2016 | 45 TRAVEL: FRIULI ‘For visitors seeking Your Friuli address book outstanding Accommodation Restaurants Al Ponte, La Botteguccia dei Sapori food and Agriturismo Colli di Orsone, Cividale del Friuli Poianis, Prepotto Joe and Lidia Bastianich opened this wine, and Maura and Gabriele offer generously smart, cosmopolitan restaurant and bar sized apartments in a peaceful location in 2013. Situated right by their winery, beautiful just a few kilometres away from close to Cividale del Friuli, the modern Prepotto. You’ll sample Maura’s baking European cooking is top notch, as is the countryside, and passion for local, artisanal foods at service. The sommelier is truly breakfast. A wine tasting and tour of the outstanding – let her suggest creative the region is estate is also highly recommended. wine matches. www.orsone.com www.collidipoianis.it a paradise’ Osteria d’Alchemista, Agriturismo Paraschos, Gorizia San Floriano del Collio Despite the name, this is a wine bar Shopping Set in a wonderful location overlooking buried in the back streets. Owner Al Ponte, La Botteguccia the vineyards of San Floriano del Collio, Stefano specialises in natural wines and dei Sapori, Cividale del these modern, stylish and spacious has some real treasures. Graze on local Friuli rooms are directly above the estate’s meats and cheeses, and catch some live Although this delicatessen is tiny, it’s cellars. Don’t miss the Paraschos music. www.facebook.com/ absolutely stuffed full of local, artisanal family’s excellent wines, including some Osteria-Lalchimista-1467327083558687 products – think fine olive oils, cured made in amphorae along the same lines meats, pastries and outstanding honey. as Josko Gravner’s. www.paraschos.it Osteria di Ramandolo bottegucciadeisapori.oneminutesite.it Relais Lis Neris, Covered market, Gorizia San Lorenzo Isontino Housed in an elegant market building on Situated in the middle of Friuli Isonzo, in the Corso Verdi, the stalls here offer the small village of San Lorenzo Isontino, seasonal, local vegetables, cheese, an old farm courtyard has been lovingly meats, seafood and more. This is very restored by the Pecorari family to provide much a living, breathing part of the city, four sizeable, comfortable apartments. not a chi-chi tourist attraction. Open Clockwise from top left: are Le Due Terre ([email protected]), just Oslavia provide the perfect terroir for Ribolla Everything at this estate is done with Monday to Friday mornings and the vineyards of Collio outside Prepotto, and I Clivi ([email protected]). Gialla, a thick-skinned white variety that can style and panache, including the wines. Saturday all day. are home to some of Le Due Terre’s Schioppettino/Refosco blend be very neutral when vinified as a fresh, young If you thought Pinot Gris was boring, the region’s finest Sacrisassi would surely be a first growth if it wine, but becomes complex, regal and everyday stuff, let Alvaro Pecorai wineries; Formentini were in Bordeaux. I Clivi has vineyards in both thrilling when made as a vino bianco macerato change that impression forever. Osteria di Ramandolo Castle in the town of Colli Orientali and Collio, and specialises in – an orange wine, to use the now-popular term www.lisneris.it/en/relais Clinging to one of Ramandolo’s higher How to get there San Floriano; Montasio stunning, long-aged white wines, made mainly for white wines made with long skin contact. peaks, this osteria allows a wonderful Fly directly to Friuli-Venezia Giulia cheese; the talented from Friulano. The Oslavia area is a hotbed for this style, and Palazzo Lantieri, Gorizia view of the Monte Bernadia hills, plus Airport (often called Trieste Airport, Le Due Terre family Many of these wineries are family estates you’ll find seminal producers such as Radikon Set in a stately 14th-century courtyard some very good eating. Decidedly although it is in Monfalcone) from where you’ll be tasting at the winemaker’s ([email protected]), Gravner ([email protected]) and right in the centre of Gorizia, these upper-class cooking, with clever twists London, Barcelona, Munich, kitchen table.