The renowned Friuli Isonzo, in the extreme southeast of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, lies on a plain of alluvial soils along the Isonzo River just south of Collio; Ferlat Silvano sits on the left bank here. Federica Tabacchi and Moreno Ferlat could easily be cast as two cool kids come to town, making natural wines in relatively sleepy winegrowing communities, but in reality they are exceptionally skilled and humble winemaking buddies, whose philosophy is to produce high quality wine with big personality while respecting the environment and tradition, ensuring that terroir and grape varietal remain recognizable. Ferlat is a small family-owned winery founded in 1950 and now run by Federica and Moreno, and the estate comprises 8 hectares of vineyards cultivated with strictly organic methods. Chemical aids, herbicides, pesticides are strictly forbidden, vineyard management is very precise, and the level of sulfur used has been drastically lowered, in effort to show maximum respect to the grapes, the wine, and of course, the final consumer. Theirs are wines of character that are true to the area of Isonzo, full of the flavors of the region.
Hold up, that's no red wine! And while named ‘Rosa’ it's not really a rosé, either. Just hear us out… It's a skin-contact Pinot Grigio in the old style, before Santa Margherita convinced Italy and the rest of the world that Pinot Greej was a pale complexioned wine. Done in the ‘ramato’ style common to Friuli, grapes, once pressed, see extended maceration with their skins (à la a red wine), creating a copper hued wine – in this case, one on the richly burnished/magenta side (‘ramato’ means copper in Italian.) Ferlat’s ‘PG Rosa’ goes further in its particularity, as the must remains in contact with the skins for a variable period: one part sees 2 days of maceration, one part 4, and another 7, before all are then blended together, the idea being to express all facets of the variety. Aging is on lees in stainless steel. So, what’s in a name, or color designation for that matter?! Expect an initial, heady rush of wild forest strawberries, pomegranate, dried peaches and herbs, offset by notes of earth, flint, and a saline edge that emerges progressively, with wildflower fields and lush berry brambles giving way to zippy acid and delicate, warming, tealike tannins. A wine with a decadent soul and loads of character.