2006 Lis

Alvaro Pecorari is one of the leading young growers in Friuli. His wines are distinguished for their textural elegance and class. Readers should be aware that Lis Neris is owned by members of my wife's extended family. I have always viewed education as an important component of wine criticism. An article on Friuli without these wines would have been incomplete and ultimately the consumer would have been poorer for their exclusion. For those reasons I have chosen to include the wines in this report. Neither my wife nor I have any financial or other interest, direct or indirect, in this property.

Proprietor Alvaro Pecorari has made some important changes over the last few years. The late harvests and super-ripe style of previous vintages have been replaced with earlier picking and an emphasis on freshness, an approach Pecorari feels is better suited to the Isonzo microclimate which can be quite warm but also feature good alternation of daytime and evening temperatures. Pecorari has also taken steps to eliminate the use of herbicides in his vineyards. After tasting a few of the estate's wines from 2000 and 2001 I can safely conclude that the new direction is quite positive, as those earlier wines remain heavy and haven't developed the degree of elegance I had hoped they would a few years back. Pecorari favors 500-liter French oak barrels for his top selections, with bâttonage (stirring of the fine lees) taking place twice a week. Over the last few years Lis Neris has imported its wines directly into the US, a consumer-friendly decision that has kept prices quite reasonable.