Friuli Venezia Giulia: border land
Friuli Venezia Giulia, commonly known as Friuli, is the most north-eastern region of Italy. It borders with Austria and Slovenia and for this reason has both cultural and gastronomic influences from both countries.
The territory of Friuli Venezia Giulia is characterised by the presence of the Adriatic Sea, high mountains and the Karst plateau. The warm air of the sea meets the cooler air of the mountains creating unique conditions for the production of white wine.
Friuli Venezia Giulia has a long history of wine production, as the region was on the Mediterranean spice route, so travellers passing through Macedonia and Anatolia brought vines, contributing to the development of wine production.
A crucial step was taken in the 1960s, when the region’s winegrowers pioneered modern white wine-making techniques in Italy.
Wine
In Friuli Venezia Giulia there are 20,000 hectares of vineyards producing 1.2 million hectolitres of wine per year, 750,000 of which are DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata): Friuli Venezia Giulia produces 4 DOCG, 9 DOC and 3 IGT