Miani Ribolla Gialla Pettarin: 2000 – 2015
BY IAN D'AGATA |
Enzo Pontoni is a uniquely talented man. The red and white wines he crafts out of a tiny, no frills winery that is also his home are of simply mind boggling quality. The soft spoken, humble Pontoni is equally skilled with both international and native varieties. Picking a favorite wine from his star-studded lineup is admittedly a very hard thing for most people to do. Not for me. While I love the two Friulano wines, the Buri and the Filip (reviewed recently in a vertical tasting on Vinous), for a variety of reasons I have always loved Pontoni’s magnificent Ribolla Gialla Pettarin even more. In my opinion, the Pettarin is one of Italy’s greatest white wines.
A glimpse into the stripped down cellar during harvest
The Pettarin Vineyard
The Miani Ribolla Gialla has carried the Pettarin name since the 2011 vintage in honor of the family that used to own the vineyard. Pontoni was finally able to buy the three-hectare vineyard a few months ago, which is fantastic news for all those who love fine wines because it means that Pontoni will be able to keep making his Ribolla Gialla without losing the source of grapes, as unfortunately happened with the mesmerizingly great Refosco del Peduncolo Rosso from the Calvari vineyard. I do not refer to “the source of the grapes” haphazardly. Anyone who knows what Miani is all about realizes that the magic starts in the vineyards. It is no different with the Pettarin. These Ribolla Gialla vines are anywhere from 80-100 years old, and the combination of Pontoni and old vines makes magic. Of course, it helps that the vineyard is located in the Rosazzo subzone of the Friuli Colli Orientali denomination. Rosazzo has always been one of the two true Grand Crus for Ribolla Gialla in Italy, the other being Oslavia in the Collio. Soils here are the classic ponca, a mixture of marl and sandstone that can give remarkably complex, deep and refined wines. Ribolla Gialla is a very vigorous variety characterized by small bunches and grapes with thick skins. Yields need to be drastically reduced in order to get the best results. Of course, old vines help, as they are naturally self-regulating. Soils need to have good drainage and the microclimate needs to be warm, dry and breezy (Ribolla Gialla likes heat), all of which Rosazzo has in spades.
For my money, Miani proprietor Enzo Pontoni makes Italy’s greatest white wines. None of Pontoni’s other wines showcase his amazing talent more than the Ribolla Gialla. Concentrated and complex yet also crystalline, Pontoni’s Ribolla is light years ahead of everyone else’s.
