Giorgio Nicolini Piccola Nera 2018

This week’s Wine Crush is Nicolini Piccola Nera 2018 from Friuli-Venezia, Italy. 

Some crushes are very good and others are magically good, and this Piccola Nera is certainly of the latter kind. Easily confused with a rosé or orange wine, this near-extinct varietal looks hypnotically orange in the glass, despite being a very red grape.

Grown on the border between Italy and Slovenia by Georgio Nicolini and his family, Piccola Nera is indigenous to the Friuli region. Made using a traditional hand-crank press that results in a softer pressing, the grapes are macerated for 48-to-72 hours on the skins and then aged for eight months in neutral oak barrels. Everything about this wine is graceful—delicate notes of wild berries and flowers balanced with persistent tannins and touch of acid. 

We recommend drinking this bottle at room temperature, but a light chill will result in a slightly more acidic flavor. It’s rumored that there are only four hectares of Piccola Nera left in the world so no matter how you drink it, it’s one to savor.