Refosco
Encyclopedia
Refosco is a very old Italian
family of dark-skinned grape
varieties native to the northern Italian areas of Friuli
, Gavi, Trentino, Istria
, and Karst Plateau
. It is considered autochthonous in these regions.
The wines this grape yields can be quite powerful and tannic, with a deep violet color and a slight bitterness. On the palate, there are strong currant, wild berry and plum flavors. The wine can stand some aging (depending on variety), and after a period of four-to-ten years, it achieves a floral quality as well. Refosk should be served at 16 °C (60.8 °F), or if it is particularly rich in tannin, at 18 °C (64.4 °F). It goes best with charcuterie, game, and grilled poultry.
, another ancient variety of northern Italy, as one of its parents.
Some authorities have previously suggested that Mondeuse Noire
, which is primarily found in the Savoy
region in eastern France, is identical to Refosco dal Pedunculo Rosso due to the similarity of the wines. DNA analysis has shown that this is not the case, and that the two varieties are unrelated.
Several oenologists believe that wines made from refosco family grapes are the old Roman puccinum. The grapes were well known in antiquity
and variety of refosco wine was praised by the Roman
writer Pliny the Elder
in the first century for its quality. In his work Naturalis Historia he mentioned that puccinum was made of grapes grown in the north Adriatic near the spring of Timavo
- a typical Karst river:
Puccinum was known for its medical properties and it is believed that it was the favorite of Augustus
's wife Livia
, who lived to the respectable age of 82.
Although there is also a theory that puccinum could be a sweet white prosecco. This theory was supported by italian prof. Gianni Dalmasso who claimed that Livia could not like the bitter taste of refosco wine and that the only possible wine she could like was a sweet variety of prosecco
grown around Trieste
region . There is also a comment on the medieval map Prosecho ol:Pucinum, hinc vina a Plinio | tantopere laudata (Prosecho, once called Pucinum. From here comes wine highly praised by Plinius), form Gregorio Amaseo, (1464-1541) .
Even the famous Giacomo Casanova
liked the refosco wine, as he describes it in his book of memories
:
It is also believed that one of the reasons the Habsburgs build the Parenzana
railway from Trieste to Poreč was because they liked the wines from the region (refosco, malvasia and teran). That is also why the railway was often referred to as a wine railroad or vineyard railway.
Italian wine
Italian wine is wine produced in Italy, a country which is home to some of the oldest wine-producing regions in the world. Italy is the world's largest wine producer, responsible for approximately one-fifth of world wine production in 2005. Italian wine is exported largely around the world and has...
family of dark-skinned grape
Grape
A grape is a non-climacteric fruit, specifically a berry, that grows on the perennial and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis. Grapes can be eaten raw or they can be used for making jam, juice, jelly, vinegar, wine, grape seed extracts, raisins, molasses and grape seed oil. Grapes are also...
varieties native to the northern Italian areas of Friuli
Friuli-Venezia Giulia wine
Friuli-Venezia Giulia wine is wine made in the northeastern Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. Once part of the Venetian Republic and with sections under the influence of the Austro-Hungarian Empire for some time, The wines of the region have noticeable Slavic and Germanic influences...
, Gavi, Trentino, Istria
Istria
Istria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
, and Karst Plateau
Kras
Karst ; also known as the Karst Plateau, is a limestone borderline plateau region extending in southwestern Slovenia and northeastern Italy. It lies between the Vipava Valley, the low hills surrounding the valley, the westernmost part of the Brkini Hills, northern Istria, and the Gulf of Trieste...
. It is considered autochthonous in these regions.
The wines this grape yields can be quite powerful and tannic, with a deep violet color and a slight bitterness. On the palate, there are strong currant, wild berry and plum flavors. The wine can stand some aging (depending on variety), and after a period of four-to-ten years, it achieves a floral quality as well. Refosk should be served at 16 °C (60.8 °F), or if it is particularly rich in tannin, at 18 °C (64.4 °F). It goes best with charcuterie, game, and grilled poultry.
Varieties
There are several varieties of refosco familyhttp://www.chalmersnurseries.com/www/varieties/refoscodalpeduncolo/refoscodalpeduncolo.htm Chalmers Nurseries - Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso, accessed 2011-06-22Vina Steras - Refošk, Slovene, accessed 2011-06-22:- Refosco dal peduncolo rossoRefosco dal Peduncolo RossoRefosco dal Peduncolo Rosso is a red Italian wine grape grown predominantly in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of northeast Italy. The grape is a variety in the Refosco family and derives its name from its red stems...
- probably the most internationally recognizable refosco wine. Cluster has the red stalk (peduncle), referring to the red stem that holds the grapes to the vine. In the attempt of making the wine more approachable to an international palate, recent versions have taken well to new oak and cold fermentation. The most well known examples of Refosco come from the Colli Orientali region of Friuli. http://www.chalmersnurseries.com/www/varieties/refoscodalpeduncolo/refoscodalpeduncolo.htm Chalmers Nurseries - Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso, accessed 2011-06-22 - Refosco d'Istria (Refosko Istriano or Refosco dal pedunculo verde) - this variety is grown in SlovenianSlovenian wineSlovenian wine is wine from the Central European country of Slovenia. Viticulture and winemaking has existed in this region since the time of the Celts and Illyrians tribes, long before the Romans would introduce winemaking to the lands of France, Spain and Germany...
and CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n parts of IstriaIstriaIstria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
, and around TriesteTriesteTrieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
in Italy under the name of Refošk or Refosco d'Istria. This wine does not benefit from protracted aging. - Teran or Terrano - this refosko variety (and wine) is typical for Carso DOCCarso DOCCarso is an Italian wine-producing zone located in the provinces Trieste and Gorizia in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, on the border with Slovenia. It is classified as a Denominazione di Origine Controllata and produces both red and white wine...
and SlovenianSlovenian wineSlovenian wine is wine from the Central European country of Slovenia. Viticulture and winemaking has existed in this region since the time of the Celts and Illyrians tribes, long before the Romans would introduce winemaking to the lands of France, Spain and Germany...
KarstKARSTKilometer-square Area Radio Synthesis Telescope is a Chinese telescope project to which FAST is a forerunner. KARST is a set of large spherical reflectors on karst landforms, which are bowlshaped limestone sinkholes named after the Kras region in Slovenia and Northern Italy. It will consist of...
reagion under the name Teranno CarsoTerrano (grape)Terrano or Teran is a Slovenian dark-skinned grape varieties. It is a member of the Refosco family of grape varieties, which also includes Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso....
or Kraški teran respectivelyFriuli – Venezia Giulia Wines, accessed 2011-06-22. It is also grown in Croatian IstriaIstriaIstria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
on a very similar red soil under the name Istarski Teran. Some claim that Teran is just other refosko varieties grown on Terra RossaThe Association of Wine Educators - Visit to Slovenia, accessed 2011-06-22, while others consider it its own variety. - Refosco di Faedis - a variety cultivated in FaedisFaedisFaedis is a comune in the Province of Udine in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about 70 km northwest of Trieste and about 13 km northeast of Udine, on the border with Slovenia. , it had a population of 3,101 and an area of 46.6 km²...
region, Torreano di Cividale, Povoletto, Attimis, Nimis in northeast region of Province of UdineProvince of UdineThe Province of Udine is a province in the autonomous Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Italy, bordering Austria and Slovenia. Its capital is the city of Udine....
. It is very rare and produced in small quantities. It is said to be the parent of all other refosko grapes in the region as it has many characteristics of all other refosco varieties (including high levels of acids and iron typical for Teran) - Refosco di Rauscedo
- Refosco nostrano
- Refoscone - some claim that this is just Refosco di Fadeis.
Origin and History
The Refosco family have a very long history, but details of the early history are not clear. DNA analysis of Refosco dal Pedunculo Rosso has revealed MarzeminoMarzemino
Marzemino is a red Italian wine grape that is primarily grown around Isera, south of Trentino. The wine is most noted for its mention in the opera Don Giovanni of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart . The vine ripens late and is susceptible to many grape diseases including oidium...
, another ancient variety of northern Italy, as one of its parents.
Some authorities have previously suggested that Mondeuse Noire
Mondeuse Noire
Mondeuse Noire is a red wine grape that is grown primarily in the Savoy region of France. The grape can also be found in Argentina, Australia, and California. The grape was hit hard during the phylloxera epidemic of the 19th century which nearly wiped out the vine from eastern France...
, which is primarily found in the Savoy
Savoy wine
Savoy or, in French, Savoie is a wine region situated in the Savoy region in eastern France, and is sometimes referred to as the country of the Allobroges.The Savoy landscape is distinctly alpine...
region in eastern France, is identical to Refosco dal Pedunculo Rosso due to the similarity of the wines. DNA analysis has shown that this is not the case, and that the two varieties are unrelated.
Several oenologists believe that wines made from refosco family grapes are the old Roman puccinum. The grapes were well known in antiquity
Classical antiquity
Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...
and variety of refosco wine was praised by the Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
writer Pliny the Elder
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
in the first century for its quality. In his work Naturalis Historia he mentioned that puccinum was made of grapes grown in the north Adriatic near the spring of Timavo
Timavo
The River, known in Slovene as the or , is a 2-km river in the Province of Trieste. It has four sources near San Giovanni near Duino and outflows in the Gulf of Panzano between Trieste and Monfalcone , Italy....
- a typical Karst river:
- ... This is the Region of the Carni, joining that of Japides : the River Timavus, and the Castle Pucinum, famous for good Wine. ...
- Pliniy, Natural History, CHAPTER XVIII. Venetia, the tenth Region.)
Puccinum was known for its medical properties and it is believed that it was the favorite of Augustus
Augustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
's wife Livia
Livia
Livia Drusilla, , after her formal adoption into the Julian family in AD 14 also known as Julia Augusta, was a Roman empress as the third wife of the Emperor Augustus and his adviser...
, who lived to the respectable age of 82.
Although there is also a theory that puccinum could be a sweet white prosecco. This theory was supported by italian prof. Gianni Dalmasso who claimed that Livia could not like the bitter taste of refosco wine and that the only possible wine she could like was a sweet variety of prosecco
Prosecco
Prosecco is an Italian white wine — generally a Dry or Extra Dry sparkling wine — normally made from Glera grapes. DOC prosecco is produced in the regions of Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia in Italy, and traditionally mainly in the areas near Conegliano and Valdobbiadene, in the hills...
grown around Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
region . There is also a comment on the medieval map Prosecho ol:Pucinum, hinc vina a Plinio | tantopere laudata (Prosecho, once called Pucinum. From here comes wine highly praised by Plinius), form Gregorio Amaseo, (1464-1541) .
Even the famous Giacomo Casanova
Giacomo Casanova
Giacomo Girolamo Casanova de Seingalt was an Italian adventurer and author from the Republic of Venice. His autobiography, Histoire de ma vie , is regarded as one of the most authentic sources of the customs and norms of European social life during the 18th century...
liked the refosco wine, as he describes it in his book of memories
Histoire de ma vie
Histoire de ma vie is both the memoir and autobiography of Giacomo Casanova, a famous 18th century Italian adventurer...
:
- ... His refosco, which was even better than my devout hostess's had been, made me forget all my troubles. ...:
- Giacomo Casanova. History of my life. Volume 1, Chapter 8, Page 207. Translated by Willard R. Trask. JHU Press. 1966
It is also believed that one of the reasons the Habsburgs build the Parenzana
Parenzana
The Parenzana or Porečanka is one of the nicknames of a defunct narrow gauge railway between Trieste and Poreč , in present day Italy, Slovenia and Croatia.- Name :When constructed, the railway's official...
railway from Trieste to Poreč was because they liked the wines from the region (refosco, malvasia and teran). That is also why the railway was often referred to as a wine railroad or vineyard railway.