The undisputed rising star among Italy's fine wine producing regions since the early 1970s has been the northeast, notably the province of Friuli-Venezia-Giulia. Partly as a result of its total regeneration following the second World War, and partly due to the unsinkable determination of its people, Friuli-Venezia-Giulia was rebuilt from scratch into what is today Italy's most technically and commercially advanced wine-producing area. Among its viticultural houses, none has captured greater achievement nor well-earned respect than Azienda Fratelli Pighin, one of the region's most esteemed producers of pure varietal, D.O.C. Grave del Friuli wines.

Azienda Fratelli Pighin was founded in 1963 when brothers Ercole, Luigi and Fernando Pighin acquired a 500-acre estate in the D.O.C. Grave-del-Friuli zone then belonging to an aristocratic Friulian family. The estate's villa, constructed in the 1400s and surrounded by an extensive park, is an historic structure registered in the list of the "Ville Venete;" it has been preserved in the detail of its original design, and serves as the residential pubiic relations house of Fratelli Pighin. The vineyard acreage belonging to the property had for several generations been farmed by 25 families under the former proprietor's management. The Pighin's transformation of the estate began in 1964, with restoration of the property to vineyards and orchards apportioned 70 percent to vines and 30 percent to pear and apple trees. New administrative offices and cellars accomodating 28,000 hectolitres of wine were completed in 1967. In 1968, a further 75 acres of vineyards were acquired at Spessa di Capriva, in the province of Gorizia, in the tiny, prestigious D.O.C. Collio zone, expanding the company's portfolio to encompass a full range of fine, classic wines from the two finest viticultural growing areas in Friuli. These areas are by general consent recognized to be among the finest viticultural areas for white wines in Italy.

The Risano area of Grave del Friuli, in which Pighin's principal holdings are situated, is one of the areas within the appellation considered to be superior in the quality of its soils. Geological variation in the area, however, is quite pronounced, and this phenomenon led to a careful selection of varieties best suited to each microclimate within the Pighin estate. Soils located in the eastern vineyard zone are composed of sandy clay low in nitrogen and phosphorous and rich in potassium and trace elements, lying over gravelly subsoils well-suited to red grape varieties. In this portion of the property, 44 acres are planted to Merlot vines and 43 to Cabernet Sauvignon, with small parcels planted to Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso and Cabernet Franc; and additions in Pinot Noir vines following inclusion of this variety under D.O.C. law as of the 1985 vintage. The western vineyard zone, more extensive in size, supports meager, chalky stone and gravel soils extremely well constituted for cultivation of white vine varieties. Just under 150 acres of Pinot Grigio, 52 acres of Pinot Bianco, and 40 acres of Tocai Friulano are planted in this portion of the property; acreage in Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling Renano were added subsequent to the 1985 modification in D.O.C. law. Overall yield averages between nine and ten tons of grapes per hectare depending on the variety.

The Collio property at Capriva, along the eastern border of Grave del Friuli within sight of Yugoslavia, lies on some of the sunniest and most beautiful hillsides of the area, all of which are exposed directly to the south. The yield of this vineyard is limited in part by its natural physical characteristics of deep gravel soil and pronounced incline, resulting in a yield of only five or six tons of fruit per hectare, depending on the grape variety. Planted in Pinot Grigio, Pinot Bianco, Sauvignon Blanc, Tocai Friulano, Malvasia, Traminer, Cabernet and Merlot vines, the wines are fermented at a vinification facility situated at the vineyards' edge which is maintained separately from the facilities at Risano.

With considerable subsequent investment, the vinification facility and cellars in Risano which were completed in 1967 have remained among the most technologically advanced in Friuli. The original temperature control system, which afforded 80 to 90 percent accuracy of regulation, has been replaced with a refrigeration system affording complete control not only applied selectively to each fermentation tank, but full temperature regulation throughout the 28,000-hectolitre capacity in storge.

All fermentation is carried out in stainless steel, with temperature regulated separately according to grape variety and harvest conditions. Horizontal Bucher pneumatic presses and state-of-the-art clarification, stabilization, filtration and bottling equipment complete the technical production facility. Annual capacity in estate-bottled wines averages between 1,000,000 and 1,200,000 bottles.

Azienda Fratelli Pighin has enlisted technical expertise temperted by respect for tradition in the uncompromising pursuit of quality. The firm voluntarily restricts its vineyard yield to approximately 75 to 80 percent of that permitted under D.O.C. law to enhance varietal character, concentration and quality of the fruit. Only under circumstances of the most unusual shortage are any grapes purchased from other producers, although legally in a given vintage up to 25 percent of an estate bottled wine may be produced from grapes from other than the proprietor's own vineyards. Adherence to estate bottling in this narrowest sense of the term affords the highes possible degree of control over the quality and consistency of the finished wine. Beyond the domestic market, the wines of Azienda Fratelli Pighin are represented in ten export markets, of which the most important are Germany and the United States, through a commercialization strategy focusing on restaurants, small wine shops and gourmet boutiques.

Grave del Friuli
The Friuli-Venezia-Giulia is one of three wine-producing regions, with the Veneto and Trentino-Alto-Adige, covering the eastern half of the cuff of Italy's boot. Together they are called the "Tre Venezie." Friuli-Venezia-Guilia is the easternmost; to its northwest is Trentino-Alto-Adige, and southwest is the Veneto. Austria and Yugoslavia lie to the east, and the northern coast of the Adriatic defines the region's southeastern border. The Tre Venezie together produce a greater variety and volume of D.O.C. wines than any of Italy's other regions, though disproportionately distributed: the Veneto is first in quantity, with an annual production of 12,000,000 hectolitres; Friuli-Venezia-Giulia leads in quality, but averages only 1,000,000 hectolitres a year; Trentino-Alto-Adige is between the two, with potential for growth on both fronts.

Historically, Friuli was the foundation of viticulture and commerce in northeastern Italy. Although it is supposed that the vine grew here long before the arrival of the Romans, it was their establishment of Aquilea as the second city of the Roman Empire, in 181 B.C., around which wine production was first organized. The Roman Annals of Tito Livio clearly detail the Senate's decision to expand winemaking through the institution of an agricultural policy which would foster intensive viticulture in Friuli until the fall of the Empire. The barbarian invasions which followed its demise destroyed everything the Romans had built, and it was not until the late 1200s that the Benedictine orders began to reestablish the vineyards. With the establishment of Venetian rule in the 1400s, and the three centuries of peace that followed it, the wines of Friuli were embraced by first by the royal court of Venice and later throughout Europe and Russia. Their economic importance was such that in 1549, the governor of Venice prohibited the uprooting of vines by reason that wine was "the principal nerve and sustenance of the whole Friuli region".

The phylloxera crisis of the late 1800s, followed by two World Wars of particular destructiveness to northeastern Italy, set back viticulture so severely that its present stage of development is primarily a result of the years since 1950. The recent and radical nature of this reconstruction is responsible for the extremely high level of technology evident throughout the region's viticultural facilities, a factor which has contributed significantly to the achievement of superior levels of quality in its wines. Friuli-Venezia-Giulia was the first of the Tre Venezie to secure a reputation for the quality of its wines, and particularly its white varietals. There are six viticultural zones defined within the Friuli region, with a vineyard area totaling 53,750 acres, of which 70 percent produce D.O.C. wines, approximately half white and half red, although white plantings are gradually increasing. These zones, in ascending order of size, are Latisana, Aquilea, Isonzo, Collio, Colli Orientali del Friuli, and Grave del Friuli. Collio, with 3,175 acres, and Gravel del Friuli, with 16,350 acres, are considered to be the finest producing areas and were the first to be given D.O.C. status in 1968 and 1970. Although all six zones produce a spectrum of wines, Friuli is best known for the refined Pinot Grigios of Grave del Friuli and Collio.

The Grave del Friuli, by virtue of its size and central location, exhibits soil types found elsewhere throughout the Friuli region. During the regions' geological formative period, the Adriatic Sea began to recede from what is now the Friulian basin, followed by subsequent glacial movement from the Alps toward the sea. The torrential acid rains which eventually formed the river systems carried calcium-rich dolmitic deposits to the plain, forming the present spongy subsoil. Extremely permeable, it accounts for the great aridity of the Alpine foothills and inland plains, which are characterized by meager stone and gravel topsoils appropriately known as "Grave" or "Magredi". The soil's sand and clay comtent increases as one approaches the alluvial delta, and in many areas remain quite arid due to the subsoil. Mineral content is generally low in nitrogen and phosphorous, but rich in potassium, magnesium, iron, zinc, calcium, copper, and boron. The stony soils, appropriate to white vines, account for roughly 60 percent of the vineyard area, and produce wines of crisp acidity, medium body, and delicate, distinctive aromas. The sandy clay soils, suited to red varieties, lend color, body, texture, and a warm bouquet to the wines. The climate, cool yet moderated by the proximity of water and the sun's reflective effect on the stony soils, allows a long growing season to ripen the fruit well into autumn season before harvest.

Distribution of the seven primary D.O.C. varieties is as follows: Tocai Friulano, 2,724 acres and 17 percent of production; Pinot Bianco, 1,203 acres and seven percent; Pinot Grigio, 873 acres and six percent; Verduzzo Friulano, 866 acres and five percent; Merlot 8,546 acres and 52 percent; Cabernet Sauvignon, 1,556 acres and nine percent; and Refosco 608 acres and four percent. Total maximum production of 590,000 hectolitres annually accounts for slightly over one third of Friuli-Venezia-Giulia's average yield.