Friuli

It is known that the vine was brought in Friuli by the Eneti in XIII-XII century b.C. but nothing about that has been so far discovered. We have therefore no clear information about the pre-Roman period. In Roman times, the vine was cultivated throughout the region, but is only in the Middle Ages that Friulian wines became central to commerce and everyday life. A document dated 1307 shows the sale of a land palnted with vines with the name “urnas raboli”, that is Ribolla wine; after that Terrano, Pignolo and Picolt vines were introduced. In 1850 the powdery mildew appears, in 1881 the downy mildew and in 1888 the phylloxera: they destroyed almost all the vines in the region.

It is in this period that French vines were planted and this is the reason why to define a Merlot vine as “not native” to Friuli sounds strange, as it does for Cabernet and Pinot Noir.

The Collio DOC was the first one to be created in 1968; after that came the Colli Orientali one and then the Aquileia one. Although the fact that Friuli is known for its white wines, the total production is divided between 50% white and 50% red wines. The north of the region is full of mountains and vines are not cultivated, whereas the most important areas are the hills and areas near the sea.

As for terroir and sun exposure, the Azienda Agricola Teresa Raiz is located in a favoured position, between the two DOC areas Grave and Colli Orientali The vineyards cover 15 hectares of a land naturally suited for the production of DOC wines of high quality. This location allows the company to select the very best from its production and to propose a product that enhances the soil characteristics of both DOC areas, (rocky and flat in the Grave area and a medium-textureand hilly terrain in the Colli Orientali area).