i Clivi - tradition, experience, new thoughts & DELISH wines
This part of Friuli is a bit like the land that time forgot! Sandwiched between Italy proper, the Adriatic Sea and Slovenia with Hungary & Croatia right there, it’s easy to forget that Friuli was part of Austria then part of Italy then ceded to Yugoslavia as recently as 1947. The London agreement of 1954 restored the city of Trieste and part of the old Yugoslavian region to Italy. Trieste became the region’s capital but parts of Friuli remained behind the iron curtain. A statute of autonomy for the region was passed on January 31, 1963 but borders were still real - families and lands still divided.
Fast forward to present times and now, you can pass from Italy into Slovenia without even knowing - just a sign on the side of the road. As a child growing up in the cold war period, it is utterly fascinating to me to pass old border patrol stations that are being taken back by the forest and to see first hand how arbitrary lines on maps deeply affect the lives of so many people.
All this plays into my major crush on i Clivi & the wines of this amazing place. After years (40+) in Africa, Ferdinando felt deeply the need to return to the land and what better place than the land where his wife was from. He was lucky to find old vineyards that needed love and that were such a perfect representation of this place. The years of traveling in vastly different lands allowed Ferdinando to escape the dogmatic approach and to embrace approaches that honored the land and the grapes - allowing the vines to find their own way and to not get in the way of that expression in the cellar.
Mario came to join his father and found that a life of nomadic pursuits was tamed. His connection to the land became intensely personal - he was connecting to the land of his mother and discovering parts of himself at the same time. My history is very similar and this resonates so deeply with me - part of my crush!!!
After a lifetime of adventures and learning, Ferdinando passed away a few years ago. Mario took up the torch - slowly adding his own insights & breathing new life while honoring the heritage of his past. As are a lot of vignerons & farmers in this part of Friuli, he is recovering land in Hungary and Slovenia - looking at the region as a whole not as arbitrarily decided countries. Just as it was forever ago —--- and as romantic as this sounds, it really does show through in the wines.
As a child growing up in the West during the cold war, the fall of ‘the wall’ and the rebuilding of those nations, I have always been intrigued by this part of the world. The opportunity to visit - to walk in these vineyards and see the beauty - the connection to land - it really is so stunning and so beautiful!!
come by and meet Mario on November 18 SUNSET HILL!
Taste the wines!!! I know it’s late notice but it will be an opportunity you will be so glad you took advantage of!! If you can’t make it or you wanna really kill some time, feel free to continue reading here for more info on the wines we currently have in the shop.
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i Clivi ‘RBL’
100% Ribolla Gialla
Grapes are pressed and racked (removed from the skins, stems, etc.) and the resulting juice is placed in an open vat where it ferments, releasing the CO2 into the air. Just as it’s about done but when the residual sugar is still fermentable (about 25g/ liter which is just what it takes to produce the bubbles) – the vat is closed so that the remaining Co2 released by the fermentation of the remaining sugar is trapped in the juice creating BUBBLES!!! The wine is then left in the same vat to mature on its lees and subsequently bottled under pressure. In this way the grape variety retains its aroma and salinity. Crushable and delicious with just enough seriousness to remind you that this is really, really good wine!!.
i Clivi ‘Galea’
90% Friulano, 10% Verduzzo (70+ year old vines)
Two vineyards, two different tales of the Friulano grape ---- “Galea” Vineyard on Gramogliano Hills, Corno di Rosazzo, Province of Udine, along the Slovenian Border.
I am awe struck, gobsmacked, utterly wowed!! I mean, this is great wine. And I find it so utterly amazing to taste a 20+ year old dry white drinking at its prime but that keeps getting better and better! How is this possible? I keep whispering this question to myself and taking another sip to verify that I was right - can it possibly be this good? It is!
SPOILER ALERT - it really is that good!! This wine is all about terroir, elegance, freshness & complexity - it embodies elegant structure. Almond blossoms dance with Bartlett pears and hints of citrus! Savory notes of fennel, green herbs, mineral acidity and a super classic finish that is intense with a quiet power that lasts forever!
i Clivi ‘Brazan’
90% Friulano, 10% Malvasia Istriana (70+ year old vines)
Two vineyards, two different tales of the Friulano grape ---- “Brazan” Vineyard in Brazzano di Cormons, Province of Gorizia, along the Slovenian border
AGAIN! I am awe struck, gobsmacked, utterly wowed!! I mean, this is really great wine. And I find it so utterly amazing to taste a 20+ year old dry white drinking at its prime but that keeps getting better and better! How is this possible? I keep whispering to myself and taking another sip to verify that I was right - can it possibly be this good? It is!
Sounds like I’m on repeat here but no joke SPOILER ALERT - it really is that good!! This wine is all about terroir, elegance, freshness & complexity, this blend of Friulano and Malvasia is filled with elegant structure but utterly different from the Galea vineyard. Drier and sunkissed with more earthy & minerality - a lot more salty notes! Add in the citrus blossom and brightness of Malvasia Istriana & the balance is utterly mind-blowing!
i Clivi Schiopettino
100% Schiopettino (50+ year old vines)
A south-east facing slope in Prepotto, in the Province of Udine where these indigenous to Friuli grapes grow. I dearly love the under-appreciated and this magical grape fits right in!! Schiopettino is mentioned in local documents as far back as the 13th century but by the 1960s, many thought it had gone extinct! Lucky for us, some vineyards actually remained. One of the legends says that the origin of its name is cuz the wine from this grape produced such acidity that when bottled, it became slightly sparkling making the sound crackling or ‘scratch’ or ‘gunshot’ which is why the name
Brilliant ruby red color, with a clear & bright transparency. Classic dark cherry, slightly under-ripe strawberry & peppery-spiciness with super balanced acidity & bright tannin. A perfect mouthfeel - not too dark and not too light leaves me wanting sip after sip after sip….well you get the idea!
Don’t get me wrong here - I’m just as wowed by this wine! I LOVE this grape!! Maybe I just expected less from an aged white so was more blown away. Anyway, suffice it to say - I may not be using all the words to talk about how much I love it but I really, really do!!