Wine Blogging Wednesday #41

02 January 2008 08:39 PM Filed in: Wine & Food Reviews

This month's Wine Blogging Wednesday's theme is wine from the Friuli - Venezia Giulia region of Italy.

Located in northeastern Italy, Friuli - Venezia Giulia is bordered by the Alps to the north and Slovenia to the east. A very small region, it's only about two-thirds the size of Connecticut.

Over 30 different grape varieties are grown ther, including Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot. As well as several local varieties like Refosco del peduncolo rosso, Schippettino, Friulano, Ribolla gialla and Verduzzo.

Finding wines from this region was not an easy task for me. It took me over half an hour to find the two bottles that I tasted, and that was the store with the best selection in town. What I finally found were two white wines, a 2004 Tocai Friulano from Giordano Sirch and a 2006 Pinot Grigio from Ruffino Lumina. Both bottles retailed for around $17.

Tocai Friulano is a local varietal. In 2006 the name was officially changed to just Friulano because of it's similarity to the Hungarian wine Tokaji. If you read Italian you can take a look at Sirch's website here, unfortunately they don't have an english version. This was a very interesting wine, it had a taste unlike anything I've ever tried before. It has a bright golden yellow hue, with accents of bright green. The aroma is not very strong, but the taste is a strong acidity with a sweet and fruity aftertaste.

Vinewords Rating: 7 out of 10

Ruffino's Lumina Pinot Grigio is not one of the best Pinot Grigio's I've ever had. It has a bright golden yellow hue, and a slightly "green" aroma. It's very acidic, and has a hint of a honey flavor. You can visit their website here, fortunately this one is in english. The acidity was honestly too overpowering for me, but it is a very young wine so a bit of age might mellow it out some. If only I had a Clef-du-Vin right now!

Vinewords Rating: 6 out of 10

Overall I don't think I was horribly impressed with this wine region, but I can definitely see that it has potential. If I could find some better quality bottles, I believe that I would taste something from this region again.