Producer | Ronchi di Cialla |
Country | Italy |
Region | Friuli-Venezia Giulia |
Subregion | Colli Orientali |
Varietal | Schioppettino |
Vintage | 2012 |
Sku | 12017287 |
Size | 750ml |
Ronchi di Cialla is an historic producer in the Collio Orientali del Friuli, just under three miles as the crow flies from the Slovenian border. Ronchi means “hills,” and Cialla, the name of the valley comes from the Slovenian word cela which means “stream.” Friuli is most known for the appellations of Collio, known more for white wines, Carso, known mostly for its red, iron-rich soil, and Collio Orientali del Friuli known for both red and white. Branching off from the rest of the Collio Orientali del Friuli, running into the mountains from southwest to northeast is the small Cialla Valley. The valley is isolated from the rest of the Collio Orientali del Friuli. Nestled in the mountains the valley is windy and cool valley with a higher percentage of rainfall than in the rest of Collio Orientali del Friuli. Their valley has the marl (clay & limestone) found in the Collio and the rest of the Collio Orientali del Friuli, but at Cialla there is a higher percentage of limestone. All of these are key to what makes the Cialla Valley so special. So special, in fact, that they were awarded their own monopole sub-appellation (like Sassicaia & Chateau Grillet among others), so their top wines carry the appellation Collio Orientali del Friuli-Cialla. Important to mention as well is that this valley is where Dina and Paolo Rapuzzi revived the near-extinct Schioppettino variety after founding the Ronchi di Cialla estate. In fact, all Schioppettino found in Friuli, not to mention California, can be traced back to Dina and Paolo and the Cialla valley.