Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Refoscone susceptible to botrytis. Also, it suc-
cumbs easily to oidium, and unlike the other
Refosco
varieties, suffers greatly from magne-
sium defi ciency. It prefers dry, clay-alluvial
sites, but suffers water stress easily.
The offi cial and correct name of this variety,
as recorded the National Registry, is Refosco
Nostrano, though local wine producers would
prefer to have it called Refosco di Faedis, after
the town that is considered the epicenter of pro-
duction of this grape. According to Carlo
Petrussi, the region's best and most experi-
enced ampelographer, Refosco Ronchis is most
likely a biotype of Refosco Nostrano, as the two
differ slightly, both ampelographically and
behaviorally, but to the best of my knowledge,
this view is not yet supported by extensive and
accurate ampelographic and SSR profi ling data.
Costacurta's team of researchers showed that
parent-offspring relationships exist between
Refosco Nostrano and Tazzelenghe (or Refosco
del Boton) and the very rare Refosco Gentile (or
di Rauscedo) which survives only as scattered
vines in very old vineyards. Though Refosco
Nostrano and Refoscone were identifi ed as one
and the same by Calò, Scienza, and Costacurta
in 2001, recent ampelographic and genetic evi-
dence disproves this notion. Morphologically,
Refosco Nostrano is characterized by leaves of
very variable appearance even within the same
plant, a rarity in the grapevine kingdom: some
are round, others pentagonal, some indented,
others not.
According to Poggi, Refosco Nostrano was
considered a potentially high-quality if little-
known variety already three centuries ago; in
fact, wine made with it was referred to as the
“master's wine,” for nobles and landowners,
who chose fi rst between the wines made by
their farmers, always picked Refosco Nostrano
wines for themselves. Poggi also wrote that it
was the most planted of all
Refosco
s since it was
the one that, in light of its bigger berries,
yielded the largest amount of must. More
recently, Calò and Costacurta have also consid-
ered the wine to be potentially very fi ne. Appar-
ently a native of the countryside around Torre-
ano and Faedis, its very strong vigor, large
berries, and copious yields logically endeared it
to farmers everywhere in the region. Its only
Achilles' heel is that it suffers from dissection
of the spine. There are fi ve offi cial clones avail-
Which Wines to Choose and Why
Describing a wine made solely with Refoscone
is diffi cult, for there aren't any pure examples
that I know of. In fact, having visited Friuli vine-
yards an average of ten times a year for the last
thirteen years, I can state there is no 100 percent
Refoscone wine being made by anyone in sig-
nifi cant commercial quantities. Even a pure
Refoscone wine made for home use is unlikely,
as this variety is almost always found in only
small numbers, haphazardly planted among
other grapevines in old vineyards. That should
not be taken to mean that the wine is without
potential merits. Microvinifi cations of 100 per-
cent Refoscone wines I have tried offered lovely
violet and delicately vegetal notes, with tough
but not unpleasant tannins, though all seemed
to lack fl esh to me, which makes the tannins
stand out more. Research at the University of
Udine has shown that such wines have good
concentrations of benzenoids (50 percent) and
norisoprenoids (more than 30 percent). The
dark color of both grapes and wines is explained
by high total anthocyanin concentration, espe-
cially malvin and delphin, which are two of the
darker and more stable pigments in grapes.
wines to try:
To the best of my knowledge,
there are no monovarietal wines made with
Refoscone—yet. Forchir labels a wine as
“Refoscone” and though some people have
written that it is 100 percent Refoscone, it is
mainly Refosco Nostrano. Ten years ago, the
wine was said to be made with Refosco del
Peduncolo Rosso, since Refoscone wasn't even
a legally recognized variety.
Refosco Nostrano (Refosco di Faedis)
where it's found:
FVG.
national registry
code number:
206.
color:
red.
