We have already talked about Picolit being one of Colli Orientali’s DOCGs for sweet wine, so now it’s time to talk about the other one too, that is about Ramandolo DOCG. In the northern part of Friuli, Monte Bernardia blocks the route of the cold air coming from the north and forms a natural amphitheatre to the south. It’s like a theatre in reverse, where the south-facing slopes of the vineyards are the audience, and in the arena down below, the winemakers are the actors. It is in this magnificent landscape that Giovanni Dri, the man with the ‘rocky face’, makes his wine. Like so many others in the area, his family has been producing wine for generations; however, Ramandolo is a relatively new concept. Or is it? His family was already bottling wines with Verduzzo di Ramandolo on the label at the beginning of the twentieth century. Of course, Ramandolo wines were already described in the seventeenth century as extremely good sweet wines, so it was logical when Giovanni, knowing and understanding the importance of protection of geographical origin and logic, dropped the name of the variety from the label in 1984, so that only ‘Ramandolo’ remained. This was the beginning of the birth of a DOCG! According to Giovanni Dri, “Ramandolo fits into the series of great natural sweet wines; the difference is in the scale. Tokaj’s vineyard area is 7,000 hectares, whereas Ramandolo DOCG’s is 50”.
The wine is still made from the Verduzzo variety, whose thick skin plays an important role in both the health of the grape (botrytis occurs here too, but cannot can penetrate the grape as it does in Tokaj and Sauternes) and in the tannin structure of the wine it will give birth to. The harvest usually takes place in October, but Giovanni is also experimenting with a December harvest, in order to preserve greater and more intensive sweet flavours in the wine. Afterwards, the grapes are dried and then fermentation starts slowly after pressing, due to the high sugar content. As a matter of face, we are talking about ‘passito’ here.
In 1990, local producers decided to create a sub-region within Colli Orientali, and in the end, the separate DOC was born, which in 2001 had already gained DOCG status. Il Roncat’s current image, as well as everything else in the area, took shape after 6 May 1976. On that sad day, a huge earthquake destroyed the whole area; however, the tragedy opened the way for modern winemaking. (The family’s old winery building is now a B&B, run by Giovanni’s younger brother). In addition to Ramandolo, they also produce other wines traditionally associated with the region, such as Picolit, dry reds and whites, and some quite remarkable grappa. A visit to Il Roncat is a must for any winelover, not only because of the above, but also because it is Italy’s smallest DOCG, where great sweet wines, a fantastic natural environment, good restaurants and wonderful people await the visitor. And if anyone is curious about the map of the Ramandolo vineyards, just take a quick look at Giovanni Dri’s face, whose wrinkles form a pattern like the side of the mountain, towering behind him...
