Livio Felluga

It is reported that the hermit Alemanno chose the hill of Rosazzo as his spiritual retreat in the year 800. Around 200 years later, the Augustinians taught the local population the principles of agriculture here. The Pignolo grape variety can also be traced back to this place until the end of the 18th century. Sensitive and low-yielding, it had almost disappeared by the end of the 19th century and was rediscovered and re-cultivated in Rosazzo.

Livio Felluga has three wines that bear witness to the estate – wines that are not only among the best in his portfolio, but also part of Friuli’s history: Terre Alte, Picolit and the Sossò. The word comes from the Friulian language and refers to the slow, deliberate sipping – the opposite of drinking. A hint as to how this wine is intended to be enjoyed. Sossò brings together three characters from old vines in Rosazzo: Merlot provides the fullness and the smooth integration. Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso – — named after its red stalk, documented in writing in Friuli as early as 1390, then the favourite drink of Livia, wife of Augustus – brings darkness, tannin and the wild side of this landscape. And Pignolo, the ‘pine cone’ – one of Italy’s rarest grape varieties, saved from extinction in the 1970s, with compact, pine-cone-shaped grapes and a naturally high tannin content – lends a complexity and longevity that no other vine in this region can match. Matured in small French oak barrels. Then bottle ageing in climate-controlled rooms.

Since the 2016 vintage, Livio Felluga's top wine Sossò has been maturing in the bottle for an extra year before being released for sale. This Riserva is a beautiful, rich and comforting red wine that is dense on the palate, imparting pretty cherry and dark fruit flavours with plenty of spice and tobacco. The extremely articulate flavour shoulders a convincing tannin portion and yet steers into an intensely fruity final with terrificlength. The wine simply glides forward with its unique feel and a dynamism that is slow and long-lasting. SUPERIORE.DE