Italiano
FCO to Fco with news
Presented the mapping of soils and vineyards correlated with average temperature, average rainfall, and average harvest times over the past 10 years in the Colli Orientali del Friuli.
I was already confused when it said COF, now thanks to Europe giving us the pearl of wisdom FCO I no longer understand if I am in Fiumicino or already arrived in Friuli, although I confess that the view of the vineyards helps. In any case after 15 years of occasional, not even too many, visits we have wonderful news from the Friuli Colli Orientali Consortium, too bad many members did not understand the extent of it, given the outcome of some chats.
Nothing to worry about: the usual Friulian concreteness sometimes slows down "abstract" thinking, and so over time we lose Tocai (all right, it was a difficult defense); the chair industry (one was a world leader); add the pseudo-Sauvignon scandal, all created at home, with massive damage to the region, and Friuli stagnation ensues.
At the headquarters of the Fco and Ramandolo consortium, brilliantly presented by communications and promotion officer Matteo Bellotto, we learned the result of a 10-year data collection effort. Mapping soils and vineyards correlated with average temperature, average rainfall, average harvest times over the past 10 years divided by grape varieties, differentiating neighboring vineyards if clones and rootstocks were different. So now a producer knows exactly whether the area under consideration is droughty, wet, hot or cold, how much active temperature is present for choosing grape varieties, clones and rootstocks to enhance the individual vineyard. A heavy, long work but with enormous importance, certainly the first in Italy on such a vast area. For the future, it should lead to a rationalization of the vineyards of the Colli Orientali where the old custom of doing everything everywhere still prevails, which is one of the evils for the growth of the area. It will avoid, but perhaps the hope is in vain, having producers with 4 hectares of vineyard in one body producing 8 wines.
But this was not the only nice novelty, we met in the "multi-farm" lunches some young producers with new ideas, important studies not only in wine-making behind them and a "different" vision of the territory. The visits to two companies working on wine derivatives were interesting. The Domenis distillery, which offered us grappas of great elegance, and the Midolini vinegar factory, with products of great personality well defined by the boundaries of types.
The welcome dinner was perfectly handled by the two star chefs Matteo Metullio and Emanuele Scarello with dishes as amazing as the Rosazzo Abbey viewpoint was before a thunderstorm forced us to return in the pouring rain.
We now point you to the wineries that although not yet in The Essential Guide 2024 deserve great attention. What struck me is that all their production is of a good standard, a clear indicator of excellent knowledge and good work in the vineyard and cellar. Let's say they will be famous.
