Tag Archives: Napa Valley Register

White wines from Friuli Venezia Giulia

Written by Allison Levine on December 3, 2019

Lifestyle Wine

One thing about wine is that general statements are difficult to make. There is not one definitive way to make wine. There are hundreds of wine grapes, all different in style, taste and texture. And opinions about wine are individual. That is why I find it so surprising, and frustrating, when I hear people make the blanket statement “I don’t like white wine”. I find it impossible that there is not any least one white wine a self-proclaimed anti-white wine lover would like. There is a vast and diverse world of white wines and so many different styles and lots of wine regions around the world make wonderful white wines. In fact, in Friuli Venezia Giulia in the northeast of Italy, 77% of the wine produced there is white wine! Read about these wonderful white wines in my recent story for the Napa Valley Register.

I cannot tell you how many people have told me that they do not like white wine. I have heard it at wine tastings, at restaurants and wine bars and even from friends.

I am always surprised by such blanket statements. There is such a vast world of white wines that I cannot believe that there is not one white wine out there for everyone. For me, I love white wines because I love the variety.

There are hundreds of different white wine varieties and one region offering a vast selection of white wines is Friuli Venezia Giulia.

Friuli Venezia Giulia is a region in the northeast of Italy, bordering Slovenia and Austria and stretching from the Alps to the Adriatic Sea. There are 20,000 planted hectares and 1,700 vineyards and 90 percent of the wines produced in the region are DOP certified wines, with 12 DOCs and four DOCGs. Of the wines produced, 77 percent is white wine.

The geography of Friuli Venezia Giulia consists of 3,000-meter-high mountains, rivers, 150-300 meters above sea level hills, plains and the Val Vipara, a valley that cuts through the mountains. The Bora winds, a strong, cold, gusty wind blows through the region in the winter, and Friuli Venezia Giulia receives the highest amount of rainfall in Italy. The well-draining soils consist of gravel, flysch di cormons (repeated sedimentary cycles under water, resulting in alternating layers of marl and sandstone) and karst (formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum).

Friuli Venezia Giulia was influenced by Austrian wine culture more than Italian wine culture, and after phylloxera, the Austrians preferred to plant French varieties. While international grape varieties, including Pinot Grigio, Pinot Bianco, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, are grown in Friuli Venezia Giulia, it is also home to the largest variety of native grapes.

Friulano

Friulano is the flagship wine of Friuli. It was previously called Tocai Friulano until Hungary obtained the exclusive use of the name “tocai.” Today it is called Friulano but is also known as Sauvignonasse, Tai or Lison. A grape that goes from green to yellow within a couple days, it must be harvested immediately or else it will self-destruct with the skins dissolving from within and turning brown. Friulano produces a wine that with aromas of white flowers, apricot, green apple and almond.

Bastianich 2017 Friulano, Colli Orientali – With notes of white flowers, stone fruit, green apple and almond on the nose, the wine has chalky mineral notes on the palate and medium-plus acidity that lingers on the mid-palate.

Malvasia Istriana

Malvasia is a common grape name, but Malvasia Istriana is a high-quality Malvasia. Dating to the 13th century, it is though to originate from Croatia and eastern Adriatic. The grape has thick skins and prefers poor soils on hillside vineyards. Know as just “Malvasia” in Friuli Venezia Giulio, it can be found in the Carso DOC where it produces a mineral-driven wine, and in the Friuli Isonzo DOC where it produces a full-bodied wine. Typically fresh and fruity, Malvasia has notes of apricot, peach, apple and wisteria with a saline, diesel note.

Gradis’Ciutta 2016 Malvasia, Collio – Notes of apricot, peach, flint and saline on the nose and on the palate the wine has a slight oiliness in the midpalate but high acidity.

Ribolla Gialla

Related to Traminer and Gouais Blanc, Ribolla Gialla produces a big grape with a thin skin and high acidity. It prefers well-draining, low-clay hillside vineyards and can be found planted in the Collio and Collio Orientali areas of Fruili Venezia Giulia. Ribolla Gialla produces a wide variety of styles, from sparkling wines to light bodied to orange wines, and typically has aromas of white flowers, citrus and white pepper.

I Clivi Ribolla Gialla 2017, Collio Orientale – Notes of flint, stone and lemon zest, the wine is crisp and lean with fresh acidity and a saline finish.

Verduzzo

Not to be mistake for Verduzzo Trevigiano, which is grown in the Veneto, Verduzzo in Friuli Venezia Giulia. There are two sub-types of Verduzzo, Verduzzo Verde, which is used to make dry wines on the flatlands, and Verduzzo Giallo, planted on the hillsides and considered higher quality. A tannic grape, it produces a zesty wine with citrus, apricot and honey notes. It is most famous in the dessert wine Ramandolo DOCG made from air-dried Verduzzo grapes.

Picolit

Dating to as early as the 12th century and officially documented in the 17th century, Picolit suffers from floral abortion, a genetic malady in which the flowering buds do not develop properly and, therefore, pollination rates are poor. Crops are small but the remaining clusters are filled with flavors and produce wines with notes of ripe tropical fruit, acacia honey, white flowers and citrus. Picolit is a grape that can be picked late-harvest or air-dried for Colli Orientali del Friuli Picolit DOCG, a wine that is often compared to Sauternes.

Vitovska

A cross between Glera and Malvasia Bianca Lunga, Vitovska is also called Garganja or Gargana. Vitovska can be found planted in the Carso DOC, located along the Slovenian border. The grape produces big bunches and the resulting wine is zippy with herbal and citrus notes.

Friuli Venezia Giulia is a region that appreciates the beauty and diversity of white wines. These indigenous grapes are fun to discover and will open up your mind to the world of white wines.

Read the original story in the Napa Valley Register.

Remi Cohen’s road to success

Written by Allison Levine on November 26, 2019

Lifestyle Wine

I love meeting winemakers and learning their stories of how they got to where they are in the wine industry. Everyone has their own path with unique experiences along the way. Recently, I sat down with Remi Cohen, the General Manager of Lede Family Wines in Napa Valley. This young, articulate, passionate, intelligent woman set a goal for herself to be the general manage of a winery before she was 40 years old. Lo and behold, she accomplished that which I wrote about in the Napa Valley Register and share with you here.

I sat down with Remi Cohen, the chief operating officer of Lede Family Wines, to interview her for my podcast Wine Soundtrack. One question I ask the winemakers in the interview is “What is your proudest achievement in your work to date?”

Each accomplishment is something of pride, and no accomplishment is any less significant than another. When I asked Cohen that question, her response was that her proudest achievement was accomplishing a goal she had set for herself. She had decided that she wanted to be the general manager of a winery by the time she was 40 years old. And she accomplished that goal when she became the general manager of Lede Family Wines at the age of 37.

How did a woman from East Brunswick, New Jersey end up as the chief operating officer of a winery in Napa Valley?

Cohen did not grow up in the wine culture. Her parents were not into wine. With an inclination for science, she went to college at UC Berkeley where she was pre-med, studying molecular and cellular biology.

She was destined for medical school, in the absence of any other plans, but quickly became disillusioned. Cohen graduated from college with a Bachelor of Science degree in molecular and cellular biology and started working in a biotech company studying plant biology.

Wanting to stay in the Bay Area, she enrolled in the Viticulture and Enology program at UC Davis where she received her master’s degree.

While at school, one of Cohen’s most memorable wine- tasting experiences was a vertical of Saintsbury Carneros Pinot Noirs ranging from 1990 to 1999 with the enologist Michael Richardson. She was so astounded by the continuity and nuances between each vintage that after the tasting, she approached Richardson and thanked him. He asked her what she was doing, and she explained that she was a grad student. He offered her an internship and in 2001 she became a harvest intern at Saintsbury Winery.

In 2002, Cohen joined the viticulture and vineyard operations at Bouchaine Vineyards, where she spent four years, followed by four years at Merryvale Vineyards where she was the vineyard manager and later the director of operations. In 2008, Cohen completed her MBA, and in 2010 she founded her own viticulture and wine-making consulting company called Vines to Wine. While she was consulting, she began working with Cliff Lede Vineyards.

As Cohen’s career evolved, she spent most of her time on the viticulture side of the business. But she took a larger role in wine-making, sales and marketing than most in her position. This was because when she had worked at Bouchaine Vineyards as the vineyard manager, Michael Richmond, who founded Acacia Winery, was the general manager. He encouraged Cohen to get more involved in the sales and marketing side of the wine business. He taught her how to talk about wine, and she credits him with helping her pivot from the production side of the wine business to other aspects, such as sales and marketing. From here, she set her sights on becoming a general manager of a winery.

The challenge would be working for someone who would see her potential when she was not taking a traditional route. Cohen went on many interviews but felt that too many judgments were made about her being a young woman. The one person who did sense her potential was Cliff Lede. Cohen and Lede shared a vision for sustainable farming, gentle wine-making practices and a goal to produce the highest quality wines. After working as a vineyard consultant for Cliff Lede Vineyard, Cohen joined the winery full time in 2012, becoming the director of wine-making and viticulture. And in 2014, Cohen was promoted to vice president and general manager of Lede Family Wines.

Today, Cohen directs the wine-making process from the vineyard to the bottle for Cliff Lede Vineyards in the Stags Leap District of Napa Valley and FEL Wines in the Anderson Valley. She also oversees the sales of all wines both domestic and international, as well as through the hospitality experience and the wine club direct-to- consumer programs.

In fewer than 20 years, Cohen Cohen went from viticulture student to viticulturist and winemaker to general manager. Sometimes it is who you meet along the way that will lead you down the road you take, and sometimes it is about finding people who believe in you and who are willing to take a chance. But it is also about having a vision, setting goals and working hard. And, as Cohen said, do what you love and be your own advocate.

Read the original story in the Napa Valley Register.

Two Regions in Spain, Two Cooperatives and Two Women

Written by Allison Levine on November 19, 2019

Wine

I recently wrote about having dinner with representatives from two wineries in Spain. What was all the more special about this dinner, aside from the delicious wines and exquisite food from Auburn Restaurant, was the company. I had the pleasure to dine with two women from two different regions who are both in positions of power at winery cooperatives. I shared their stories in the Napa Valley Register which you can read here.

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I recently had dinner with representatives from two wineries in Spain. One winery is in Rias Baixes on the northwest corner and the other in Calatayud on the northeast corner. What both wineries have in common is that they are both cooperatives and both have women holding positions of power.

The wine world has long been dominated by men, and Spain, as much of the old world, has had a tradition of machismo. But women are making a name for themselves. Enrollment of women in Spain’s university winemaking programs has increased by more than 40 percent over the last 20 years. No longer stuck in the lab or in marketing, they are making the wine and running the wineries. And, I had the pleasure to sit down with two of these women and learn about them, their stories and taste their wines.