Mateja Gravner accompanies us in the tasting of two vintages of Ribolla

On our journey through Italy, we could not miss a Friulian stop, in which to taste the Gorizia wines of the Gravner winery not far from the company's largest vineyard, the “Ruck”.

In the eight hectares of the estate, Ribolla (or “rebula”) and black Pignolo are mainly cultivated, in an environment cared for from the point of view of biodiversity: trees of different species animate the horizon, together with the body of water of a pond with water lilies. Mateja also tells us that in the surrounding greenery there are also artificial nests, to welcome birdlife and give back to nature what it gives to men, a value dear even

to Father Josko.

How do you perceive the environment that surrounds us right now?

Despite being an artificial environment, in which the human hand acts heavily, this landscape is functional to making our vines grow in the best way. What we aim for is a high quality result, right from the beginning of the business: in this way the bunches of grapes give us the wine in front of you, a symbol of the respect for life that characterizes our production methods and of the philosophy that we adopt

in our work.

Does the use of amphorae for wine production also go in this direction?

The amphora certainly accentuates the merits of the wine, cradling it inside without intervening in the fermentation. Being made of terracotta and being buried, it has a double link with the soil and with our land, with the millennial past of vinification and with the historical tradition (Roman and not only) linked to wine production. After 7 months for white wines, with a variable interval of time from year to year, the amphorae are drained and the wine matures in barrels. The final aging takes place in 41 months, partly still in amphorae and partly in

barrels.

What do we have in front of us right now?

In addition to being in sight of the vineyard most linked to our origins and which represents the roots of our business having been planted in 1901, we have a 2012 Ribolla in the glass coming from these very plants. My house also overlooks these vines: every morning since I opened my Instagram profile I have an appointment with the image of the world that I see through the window, very often from this window, and many people wait for me to share with them the peace that can be breathed from this

stamp of heaven.

Going back to the wine, or rather to the glass in which I served it: the design of this craft object created by Massimo Lonardon is inspired by the oriental tea ceremony, and many after us have started to emulate it. From the beginning it had a handle, while now it has a handle: its shape serves to avoid a service temperature that is too low. In fact, this wine should not be drunk at the same temperature as a white wine, but slightly higher, as is the case with a young red wine, to prevent only the tannic and alcoholic part from emerging during the

tasting.

What are the characteristics of the year we are sipping

, instead?

The summer was hot that year, while in September we had a lot of rain. The average temperatures were higher than normal, so we had some problems with the grapes, which then led us to make a selection during the harvest. In a dark tasting we would recognize this and other Ribolla wines for their structure, for the degree of aging and the absence of sediment. Our wines are clarified by the simple deposition of sediment, thanks to the long waits in the amphora: we do not intervene with any filtration but with

simple decanting.

In the 2012 vintage, we produced a little less than 20,000 bottles, with an alcohol content equal

to 14%.

How was the 2011 vintage?

I would say very special. As you can see, the color of the wine is slightly darker, a sign of greater concentration: summer was magnificent that year, we had little rain in autumn and for this reason we finished the harvest on November 23! The weather was perfect, we didn't have any hint of botrytis unlike the following year, but a maturation to its full potential

.

The characteristics of the wine are more tannic and the final result is less pleasant. I like to say that this wine is like a boy still in full energy, who must give himself time to find his own path. More than ten years have passed, and yet the maturation of the 2011 vintage is still in its early stages. For those who have a bottle, we recommend aging for up to 35 years.

And that's a wrap for today!

And that's all for today's episode of our podcast. We invite you to listen to the full video in English, to admire the colors and scenery of the Gravner estate. If, on the other hand, you want to recover the previous chats with the producers, explore the Spaghetti and Mandolino magazine

to hear their stories.