TN: Friulian Reds...(long/boring)

We tried some Friulian reds w/ my BBB group this wek (5/12/16): BBB Tasting: Friulian Red Wines:

  1. Ronchi di Cialla Pignolo Dd’OC: Friuli Colli Orientali (14%; SolairSelection) Prepotto 2011: Dark color;
    very strong blackberry/black cherry/licorice very spicy/peppery bit earthy/rustic quite aromatic nose;
    lightly tart quite peppery/blackberry/black cherry/spicy slight earthy falvor w/ ample hard tannins; very
    long/lingering strong blackberry/black cherry/licorice peppery/earthy/rustic rather hard very structured
    finish w/ ample hard tannins; needs 4-8 yrs; much like the Schioppettino but more black cherry and harder
    tannins; a very interesting big/hard red w/ lots of aromatics. $65.00 (BWM)

  1. Sant’Elena Quantum L’Autoctono Pignolo IGT: RossoVeneziaGiulia (15%) Gradisca d’Isonzo 2006: Dark color;
    very aromatic black cherry cola/black cherry/spicy bit monochromatic some spicy/licorice lovely nose;
    bit softer/smoother bit simpler very strong black cherry cola/spicy/licorice flavor w/ light smooth tannins;
    very long/lingering very strong black cherry cola/spicy bit soft/lush/ripe/grapey some spicy/licorice
    finish w/ modest smooth tannins; not the structure of the Ronchi but plenty of lush fruit. $55.00 (DaV)

  1. Picech Rosso Le Vigne del Ribel Dd’OC: Collio (13.5%; Derailleur LLC/Boulder; Cabernet Franc/Merlot/
    Cabernet Sauvignon; www.picech.com/en) Picech Roberto/Cormons 2012
    : Dark color; strong ripe/blackcurranty/
    Cab bit licorice/pungent some toasty/smokey/oak rather fragrant/perfumed light herbal/peppery bose; rather
    softherbal/blackcurranty/Cab slight metallic/tangy light smokey/oak flavor w/ light rough tannins;
    long ripe/Cab/blackcurranty/herbal some earthy/dusty light smokey/oak finish w/ light rough tannins;
    a pleasant enough bit rustic Cab, but just that. $27.50 (Cured)

  1. Rodaro Refosco dal PeduncolaRosso DOC: Friuli Colli Orientali (14%; www.RodaroPaolo.It;
    www.WineMonger.com) Cividale 2012
    : Very dark color; very strong black cherry/blackberry/Refosco bit
    earthy/loamy some licorice/chocolaty rather floral/lilacs beautiful nose; soft/rich/lush very strong
    black cherry/blackberry/Refosco/spicy bit licorice/chocolaty slight earthy/loamy flavor w/ light hard
    tannins; very long bit hard/tannic strong black cherry/blackberry/Refosco slight earthy/loamy finish w/
    modest rough tannins; pretty classic Refosco w/ good aromatics; needs 3-6 yrs; very good price at
    $18.00 (LM)

  1. Scarbolo Refosco dal PeduncolaRosso IGT: Venezia Giulia (EB; 13.5%; www.Scarbolo.com) ValterScarbolo/
    Pavia di Udine 2011
    : Very dark color; very perfumed/floral/lilacs strong blackberry/black cherry cola/
    boysenberry/ripe almost GWT-like/hair oil beautiful complex nose; soft very lush/ripe almost off-dry
    intense Refosco/black cherry cola/boysenberry some chocolaty/licorice flavor w/ light soft/ripe
    tannins; very long/lingering floral/lilacs ripe/boysenberry/black cherry cola bit chocolaty/licorice
    finish w/ light soft/smooth tannins; on the ripe side but big/lush Refosco fruit; this is how they
    would make Refosco in PasoRobles if they could. $42.00 (BWM)

  1. Meroi refosco dal PeduncolaRosso Vigna Dominin Dd’OC: Friuli ColliOrientali (14%; www.MeroiDaVino.com;
    T.ElentenyImports; L1) PaolaMeroi/Buttrio 2010
    : Very dark color; rather earthy/mineral very spicy/
    peppery intense black cherry/black cherry cola/blackberry/classic Refosco slight earthy/rustic some
    toasty/oak very fragrant/perfumed beautiful complex nose; lightly tart very strong black cherry/black
    cherry cola/Refosco slight ripe/chocolaty some toasty/oak very slight brett very structured complex
    flavor w/ ample hard tannins; very long/lingering structured intense black cherry cola/blackberry/
    Refosco some toasty/charred/oak slight earthy/rustic complex finish w/ ample hard/rugged tannins;
    a classic Refosco but more new oak and more tannins than most; a serious rendition of Refosco; needs
    4-10 yrs; a bit pricey at $82.00 (BWM)

  1. Rojac Refosk (Organically produced; 14%; www.Rojac.EU; www.IndieWineries.com) Rojac/Istra/Slovenija
    2012
    : Very dark color; lightly herbal/Cab-like intense blackberry/black cherry cola/Refosco-like
    bit chocolaty/ripe very spicy/bit peppery slight earthy/dusty/Cab very perfumed/floral beautiful nose;
    bit tart very structured slight herbal/Cab-like earthy/dusty strong black cherry/blackberry/Refosco-like
    some complex flavor w/ ample hard tannins; very long/lingering bit herbal/Cab-like strong black cherry
    cola/blackberry slight earthy/dusty/rustic rather floral/perfumed finish w/ ample tannins; some Refosco-
    like aromatics but less rustic & more structured; needs 4-8 yrs; a steal at $17.00 (LM)

  1. Matthiasson Refosco MatthiassonVnyd/NapaVlly (12.0%; www.Matthiasson.com) Napa 2013: Dark color; very
    grapey/perfumed almost Gamay-like some toasty/oak very spicy/perfumed/cherry almost Sangio-like
    very floral lovely nose; lightly tart bit hard/tannic slight earthy/dusty bit herbal/Sangio-like
    lightly Refosco/black cherry/floral bit lean/austere flavor w/ modest hard tannins; very long bit tart/
    hard/austere light black cherry/Refosco some cherry/Sangio-like bit toasty/oak finish w/ light hard/
    rough tannins; quite a good red but speaks quietly of Refosco. $45.00

Stuff from TheBloodyPulpit:

  1. Pignolo: “pine cone” after the shape of the clusters. Or “fussy” in reference to its low yields.
    Originated in Friuli in the hills above Buttrio & Rosazzo.
    Rescued from extinction in the early '70’s when an entire row of ungrafted Pignolo was
    found at the Abbey of Rosazzo. GirolamoDorigo planted the first new planting in 1973.
    Oftentimes referred to as “Friuli’s Nebbiolo” because of its exotic aromatics.
    I’ve only had some 3-4 other Pignolas before. These two far better than any I’ve yet had. Clearly
    a variety they should be planting all up&down the coast of Calif.

  1. Refosco dal Peduncola Rosso: “red pedical or stem” in reference to the bright red stems at ripeness.
    RdPR is the best known subvariety of a whole family of Refoschi that originated in the Karst north of Trieste.
    Marzemino X ?? —> RdPR. Which makes it a grandchild of Teroldego (Teroldego X ?? —> Marzemino)
    Also found in the Lison Pramaggiore region of the neighboring Veneto.
    Although the originated in the same area, RdPR is distinct from Terrano, another grape of that area.
    In Slovenia, the grape known as Refosk is actually Terrano.
    In Calif, there has been a lot of confusion over Refosco. In the 1860’s, UC (Berkeley), there was an
    experimental vnyd in Jackson in the SierraFoothills. It lasted less than 10 yrs and was abandoned
    for a number of reasons, mostly political. In the early 1960’s, UC/Berkeley vit professor
    AustinGoheen stumbled across an old map of the Jackson experimental vnyd. He returned to that
    abandoned vnyd and took cuttings of a bunch of varieties (including “Refosco”), which were then
    propagated at FPS (now) at UC/Davis, where “Refosco” was distributed throughout Calif for yrs.
    There were a number of vnyds planted to “Refosco” over the yrs, including PieroAntinori’s
    AtlasPeakVnyd in the early '70’s. In the early 1990’s, it was found that Goheen had misread
    the Jackson vnyd map (or it was incorrect), and was was known as “Refosco” in Calif was not
    actually RdPR. Subsequent DNA typing indicated that Calif’s “Refosco” was, in fact, Mondeuse
    Noire (which it should be pointed out, is not a bad thing). This led to a lot of confusion in
    Calif that Italy’s Refosco = MondeuseNoire…which is not the case. But, according to the TTB
    (who have zero expertise in grape varieties), Refosco and Mondeuse can be used interchangeably.
    The only true planting (thus far) of RdPR in Calif is at SteveMatthiasson’s vnyd, from cuttings he brought
    back from Friuli. He also has Schioppettino planted as well. Both of these wines were conveyed
    to Ivan Rupuzzi of Ronchi de Cialla last Oct.
    Paola d’Andrea has “Refosco” planted at his Deming vnyd and a “Refosco” is made by VivacWnry. He refuses
    to answer me as to the origins of his “Refosco”.
    The Matthiasson Refosco was a bit of a puzzle to me & seems in a weird stage. The two times before I’ve
    tried it, it was very rich/lush & spoke strongly of ripe Refosco. This time, it reminded me more
    Sangio than anything.
    The Rojac would be from Terrano, not RdPR; two varieties that originated in the Karst but are distinct
    varieties. Though they do seem to have similar profiles, w/ Terrano being a bit more structured.
    Of the 10-12 Terranos I’ve had, this was probably the best. Beautiful wine.
    All three Friulian RdPR I thought were absolutely first rate. Classic black cherry/Refosco aromatics
    and flavors. All three producers were new to me. The Meroi was a slight favorite of them.

Tom

But, sadly, they cannot.

Ouch!

Thanks again, Tom!

So much information is packed into your post that it’s difficult for me to coherently list my questions/comments. Long? As usual, yes. Boring? Never (well, rarely). :wink:

The intensity of some of these reds baffles me, as I guess I incorrectly thought of cooler climates in certain areas of Italy. Looking at the latitudes, even spots higher up the boot are on-level with other “warm” wine regions.

The Jackson plantings are a cool historical footnote in California wine history. Unfortunately, whenever I Google for any details, I always get the same two-page article (neat map, though).

I wonder if the bad taste Sangiovese left in California’s mouth 15-20 years ago has burned up the chances of getting many more Italian varieties planted “up and down the coast” (besides Barbera)…