This month we travel to the Collio, in far Northeastern Italy to the Friuli-Venezia Giulia, specifically to the Collio Goriziano, located close to the border with Slovenia (the northern part of former Yugoslavia. 

Your allocation is for one bottle each of Primosic Ribolla Gialla and Marco Fellugia Russiz Superiore Cabernet Franc, both prime examples of great winemaking in the region, both organically farmed as well. 

Pimosic Ribolla Gialla Hand harvested, organically farmed, two day lees contact and fermentation in steel.  The wine's rich and attractive nose with hints of spice and creamed honey is almost misleading as the wine finishes dry with vibrant acidity. There is good length with herb characters, particularly oregano. Clean and bright with a mouth-filling, creamy texture.

Marco Felluga Cab Franc  The nose is complex and fruity—lots of ripe black cherries, blackberries, and black currants with a hint of green pepper. The wine is elegant with a rich body—full and pleasant, with fresh, silky undertones and a lingering finish that confirms its persistent aromas. Fermented in stainless, then aged in small oak casks for twelve months. After bottling, the wine remained in the cellar for approximately six months of bottle-aging.

About Primosic  When we talk about a land, vineyards and wine, a family story like the one of the Primosic family is often the story made of proper names of lands naturally propitious for grape ripening (The Collio) but above all of names of people who have created a centuries-old tradition with their work.

Although the land registers from Maria Theresa’s reign time mention some names of the first tenant farmers paying their duty to the monks of the nearby Sabotino mountain just with wine, the first name that tells the family story is the one of Carlo Primosic. At the end of 800 he provided merchants with wine which was transported in big wooden barrels from what was at that moment the south of the Austrian-Hungarian empire to Vienna.

The World War I was a disaster both for the people and the plantations on the Collio and in Gorizia. It wasn’t possible to recover from the destruction and the family tragedies until the World War II was over. The first private sales in the 50’s and the influence of young Veneto oenologists enabled Silvano Primosic to relaunch and specialize his wine production activity. The first grape harvest was bottled in 1956 and soon arrived the expressions of recognition of quality from Italy and abroad.

In 1967 The Collio Society was founded and Silvano was one of its first supporters: no wonder that the "number one" bottle of the society came exactly from the Primosics’ company.

The most important events of the recent family story were the ten-year stages such as building the new wine- shop and the present centre in 1979 and starting the quality selection in 1989. This way the wines which express the Primosics’ "philosophy" have been created: the Klin and the Gmajne-the names that derive from the oral tradition, the plots and lands where the Primosic grapes grow.

Today the people in charge of the grapevines and the wine cellar are Marko and Boris who are Carlo’s great-grandsons.

About Felluga The Felluga family’s winegrowing dynasty started at the end of 1800 in the Istria region, when the current Marco Felluga’s  grandfather Marco had the foresight to untap the terrain’s potential for developing specific grape varieties. Since then the family business has been a pioneer in regional quality and innovation.

Marco’s son Giovanni took over the business and in 1920 moved to the seaside town of Grado, close to both Collio and Colli Orientali del Friuli. After training at the prestigious Enological School of Conegliano, Giovanni’s son Marco continued to innovatively direct the business, emphasizing quality and research. Today his son Roberto Felluga heads both the family’s Marco Felluga and Russiz Superiore wineries.

Russiz Superiore, the pride of the Marco Felluga family, was named in 1273 by one of its first owners, a Torre-Tasso prince, for its “superior” or high hill location. Before Marco Felluga acquired the estate in 1967, various noble families owned it, but the main element that has always stood out and characterized the name of Russiz Superiore is the wine.

The Felluga family focuses on making intensely flavored, small production wines that maximize the intensity of the grapes as well as highlight the Collio’s local identity and the very special area of Capriva.

About Collio Goriziano (often just called Collio) is situated in the southeast province of Gorizia, located in Italy's most northeastern region Friuli-Venezia Giulia.  Its wines show Slavic and Germanic traits having once been part of the Venetian Republic and the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the area only annexed over to Italy in 1918, just after the First World War. Its name Collio means hillsides, which reflects the area’s terrain extending from the Judrio River in the west, where it borders the Colli Orientali del Friuli DOC, up to the Slovenian border on the east. To the south is the Isonzo del Friuli DOC. Thanks to the zone’s excellent terroir which includes calcerous marl and flysch sandstone soils that nurture the incredible array of grape varieties Collio has to offer, its reputation for high-quality white wines is not without cause. In fact, it is arguably Friuli-Venezia Giulia’s top-ranking DOC, marginally ahead of its neighbor, Collio Orientali del Friuli.

Another of the vineyard’s allies is the Julian Pre-Alps (a mountain range between the Resia Valley and the Friulan Plains) which provide a natural shelter for the vines protecting them from the cold north winds. Furthermore, the heavy rainfall which lies between 40-63 inches (1000-1600 millimeters) creates a water reservoir in the surface layers of the soil and serves as a natural irrigation system even in the hottest periods.

The area also benefits from its proximity to the Adriatic coast which lends a mild and temperate microclimate and reflects a remarkable quantity of solar radiation, increasing photosynthesis and helping the grapes to reach full ripeness. Likewise its environs reduce the risk of fungal diseases in an area where there is a lot of rain. Moreover, the hilly terrain is well-suited to viticulture offering a good diurnal temperature variation, resulting in a good quality core of sugars, pigments and aromatics in the grapes, which is reflected in the wines of the area. The special characteristic that the wines are known for is their incredible scent.

Another factor that contributes to the outstanding quality coming out of this DOC is the vinification process. Germanic winemaking techniques such as cold fermentation for white wines were introduced to the area, as well as incorporating refrigerated fermentation tanks, pneumatic wine presses and centrifugation bottling systems to the core of wine making.  This has resulted in the DOC being considered one of the more technologically advanced of the Friuli region. In fact the underlying aim of most winemakers is to produce a wine abundant in fresh fruit flavors retaining the purity of the grape’s character.  As a result barrel fermentation and barrel maturation is low on the agenda, though some experimentation is taking place.

Collio was awarded its DOC in 1968, continually producing phenomenally excellent wines, especially white. Their most prominent feature is their incredible aroma and purity of fruit. The wines also tend to be rich and full-bodied made as a varietal or blend; the reigning white grape is Friulano, also king in Collio Orientali del Friuli. Other notable whites are made from Ribolla Gialla, Malvasia Istriana, Chardonnay, Pinot Bianco, Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon Blanc. Wines from these varieties are known for their beautiful structure, the Ribolla with the biggest personality and higher acidity levels.  Under the Collio Bianco designation, other grapes included in the mix can consist of Muller-Thurgau, Picolit, Riesling, Traminer and Welschriesling, as well as the white juice from the red wine grapes of Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Nero.

The red jewels in the crown are Cabernet Franc and Merlot which display exceptional fruit intensity, are extremely perfumed and made for ageing. Other shining stars include Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Nero. There is also a Collio Rosso that bears the Bordeaux trio, the two Cabernets and Merlot.
 

The Collio is a land of great white wines. It produces prestigious cultivars like Sauvignon, Pinot Grigio and Tocai Friulano, The territory's long wine-producing tradition is today enhanced by giving value to indigenous vines, which are the result of centuries of activity. A perfect example of this is the Ribolla Gialla, which Primosic has been producing with great passion for a long time. The variety has been deep-rooted for centuries and has such a potentially high quality that the wine has soared to reach the top of the most appreciated international white wines. Nevertheless, Primosic brillantly expresses the territory's best quality and the results of the processing evolution in the cellar with its Collio Bianco. The result is a product of absolute prestige, a wine that is in a leading position in the production.

Recipes

For the Ribolla Gialla: Kabocha Squash and Fennel Soup with Crème Fraîche and Candied Pumpkin Seeds  Serves 6
2 pounds Kabocha squash
2 medium bulbs fennel
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teapoons fennel seeds
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups sliced onions
1 tablespoon thyme leaves
2 chiles de árbol
1 bay leaf
3/4 cup sherry
10 cups chicken or vegetable stock or water
1/4 cup crème fraîche
Candied pumpkin seeds (recipe follows)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Cut the squash in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds. Place the squash
cut side down on a cutting board, and use a sharp knife to remove the peel. Slice
the squash into 1-inch-thick wedges. Cut the fennel in half lengthwise and then
into 1/2-inch-thick wedges.

Toss the squash and fennel with the olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and some
freshly ground black pepper. Place the vegetables flat on a baking sheet and roast
about 35 minutes, until tender and slightly caramelized.

Meanwhile, toast the fennel seeds in a small pan over medium heat 2 to 3
minutes, until the seeds release their aroma and are lightly browned. Pound
them coarsely in a mortar.

Heat a Dutch oven or soup pot over high heat for 2 minutes. Add the butter,
and when it foams, add the onions, fennel seeds, thyme, chiles, bay leaf, 1 teaspoon salt, and a good amount of freshly ground black pepper. Reduce the heat to
medium-high, and cook about 10 minutes, stirring often, until the onions are
soft, translucent, and starting to color.

Add the squash and fennel, and stir to coat with the onions for a minute.
Turn the heat back up to high and pour in the sherry. Let it reduce for a minute or
two, and then add the stock and 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to a boil, turn down the
heat, and simmer 20 minutes.

Strain the soup in a colander set in a pot. Put a third of the solids into a
blender with 1/2 cup of the broth. (You will need to purée the soup in batches.)

Process at the lowest speed until the squash mixture is puréed. Add another
1/2 cup broth and then turn the speed up to high and pour in more liquid, a little
at a time, until the soup has the consistency of heavy cream. Blend at least a
minute on high speed, until the soup is completely smooth and very creamy.

Transfer to a container, and repeat with the rest of the ingredients. You may not
need all the liquid. Taste for balance and seasoning.

Pour the soup into six bowls, spoon some crème fraîche in the center of
each, and scatter the pumpkin seeds over the top. Or serve family-style in a
tureen with the crème fraîche and pumpkin seeds on the side.

candied pumpkin seeds
1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 teaspoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Generous pinch each of ground cinnamon, paprika, and cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon honey
Kosher salt

Toast the cumin seeds in a small pan over medium heat 2 to 3 minutes, until
the seeds release their aroma and are lightly browned. Pound them coarsely in a
mortar.

Melt the butter in the cumin pan over medium heat. Add the pumpkin seeds
and sugar, then sprinkle the spices and a healthy pinch of salt over them. Toss the
pumpkin seeds to coat them well with the butter, and cook a few minutes, until
just after they begin to pop and color slightly.

Turn off the heat, and wait 30 seconds. Add the honey, tossing well to coat
the pumpkin seeds. Spread on a plate and let them cool.

For the Red:  Frico with Potatoes - Serves 4-

Frico with Potatoes, or Frico con le Patate: Frico is a cheese fritter made by heating grated Montasio cheese in a skillet until it crisps with other ingredients, in this case potatoes. I had it in a little place up a hill on the way from Cividale to Udine; they had Refosco (a red wine) by the jug, and the combination worked quite well, with some polenta on the side.
Ingredients:

10 ounces  fresh or moderately aged Montasio or Asiago cheese, thinly sliced
 A scant pound  potatoes, peeled and cut in matchsticks.

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