Friuli

Friuli, formally Friuli-Venezia-Giulia, is the northeastern-most part of Italy, bordering Slovenia to the east and Austria to the north. Nestled in the curve of the Carnic and Julian Alps, it’s an area of steep limestone hills grading out to rolling plains underlain by gravels washed out from the mountains since the last Ice Age. Altitudes run from sea level to nearly 10,000 ft on the interior.

The capital, Udine, is thought to have been founded by Attilla as a hill-fort in the 400’s AD, and is a documented city from the mid-900’s. After the fall of the Western Empire (476), Udine gradually supplanted Cividale Friuli (originally the Julian Forum founded by Julius Caesar, Forum Iuli, thus Friuli…). Passing from Roman to Lombard to Frankish hands through the 700s, thence to the Patriarchs of Aquilia for a few centuries, the region was conquered by expanding Venice in 1420. It remained Venetian territory until 1797 when it was severed from Venice by Napoleon. Shortly thereafter, it became part of a short-lived Austrian client-state and then was absorbed into the new and growing Kingdom of Italy in 1866.

The region is closely linked to adjoining Slovenia and Austria as well as nearby Croatia, all parts of the historical Austrian (Holy Roman) Empire. The local language is Friulian, a late-Latin relative of modern (largely Florentine) Italian.

The climate is Continental/Montane in the interior, and more classicallly humid sub-Mediterranian on the plains.

Gori Agricola

The winery is located in Nimis about 10 miles north-northeast of Udine and known as Castrum Nemas since the 6th Century, at the northernmost point of the Colli Orientali of Friuli. Gori Agricola owns 26 terraced acres on these rolling Friulian hills

The winery was established in 2009 by Piero Gori, and in 2016 completed its transition to principales agribiologico. After the legally-requrired transition period, the winery was certified as organic in 2019.

Gori is a founding member of the Rete d’Impresa Pinot Nero FVG, a group of producers dedicated to the potential and excellence of Pinot Nero on these hills; and to the principle that Pinot Nero is the variety most capable of expressing the nuances of the varied terroirs of the region.

The Wine

Gori Pinot Nero “Nemas I°”

Pinot is a relative newcomer to Friuli but has found a home on the limestone soils of the district. It finds its best habitat in the pre-Alpine hills, caressed by the fresh winds coming from the mountains, it takes full advantage of the temperature range typical of the area.

Fermentation in conical truncated vats and aging in 500-liter French oak tonneau. Pale red color with garnet notes, very elegant on the nose with notes of small berries. Elegant and complex, the fine tannins give it superb structure. It pairs well with a range of foods from cheeses to fish, chicken and pork.