di Romans Vieris Sauvignon Friuli Isonzo, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy

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The 2009 Sauvignon Blanc Vieris Sauvignon comes across as quite deep and plush next to the Piere. Juicy apricots, peaches, flowers and light honey flow effortlessly from this big, round Sauvignon. The wine maintains plenty of intensity and presence through to the deep, textured finish. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2019. Proprietor Gianfranco Gallo has a preference for rich, textured wines. In 2009, a year that saw a long heat wave at the end of August, many of his wines are even bigger than they usually are. The best selections, though, possess terrific overall balance. Vie di Romans has a fabulous website (www.viediromans.it) full of technical information on recent vintages and the estate’s wines, among other topics. Readers should be aware that Vie di Romans 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.Importer: Vias Imports, New York, NY; tel. (212) 629-0200

The 2007 Sauvignon Blanc Vieris is a rich, expansive wine boasting layers of perfumed, ripe fruit on a generous frame. Medium in body, the Vieris flows with tons of elegance and sheer class. This is a wonderful effort from Vie di Romans. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2017. Proprietor Gianfranco Gallo is one of the leading producers in Friuli. His wines typically seek a rich, lush expression of fruit. In 2007, though, many of the wines come across as overly heavy. Readers should be aware that Vie di Romans 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.A Marc de Grazia Selection, various American importers, including: de Grazia Imports; tel. (417) 732-4200; Michael Skurnik, Syosset, NY; (516) 677-9300, Estate Wines Ltd., San Rafael CA; (415) 492-9411, Giuliana Imports, Boulder CO; (303) 547-6343, Robert Houde Wines, Bensenville IL; (630) 422-1119

The Sauvignon Vieris has never been better than it is in 2006. The French oak has given this wine an extra dimension of weight and richness, but without sacrificing varietal character. There is superb integration of aromas and flavors, as layers of ripe peaches, apricots, mint and minerals emerge from this wonderfully harmonious, seamless wine. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2016. This line-up from Vie di Romans and proprietor Gianfranco Gallo is truly impressive. To be honest, I haven’t always been a huge fan of this estate, but in recent vintages Gallo has made significant strides in quality. In the past Gallo was fanatical about communicating the exact details of vinification and aging for his wines, particularly in the use of cooperage, but he has become somewhat more reluctant, as he found that consumers formed preconceived ideas of what the wines would taste like before trying them. Although it is hard to fault Gallo for that view, it is also inescapable that he bottles large number of different wines and some of his single-varietal wines are made in two versions, so it is only natural that consumers might wonder what the differences are. At the end of the day, however, the wines speak for themselves. These remain some of the richest, lushest wines being made in Friuli, but they are also among the most elegant. Our tasting ended with a few 1996s, and I am pleased to report that the wines are still delicious today. Readers should note that not all of these wines are imported into the US, but they should be available in other markets.A Marc de Grazia Selection, various American importers, including Michael Skurnik, Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300, Vin Divino, Chicago, IL; tel. (773) 334-6700, and Estate Wines, Ltd., San Rafael, CA; tel. (415) 492-9411

The 2005 Sauvignon Vieris (aged in oak) offers ripe peaches, smoke, toasted oak and spices. This richly-textured, creamy wine possesses outstanding length even if the wine’s impressive concentration has come at the expense of varietal character. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2012. Proprietor Gianfranco Gallo's wines reflect his enormous passion for California. Stylistically they stand apart from the vast majority of wines being made in Friuli today for their level of ripeness, structure and use of oak. Gallo's vineyards are located in the Isonzo plains, an area that historically has not been particularly highly regarded for the production of high-quality wines, but that doesn't appear to have been an obstacle for the inspired Gallo. Vie di Romans' vineyards are planted to high densities and the fruit is picked as late as possible. Gallo works in a reductive manner in his impeccably clean cellar, eliminating the wines' contact with air as much as possible with the goal of making structured wines capable of extended cellaring. Most of the wines undergo malolactic fermentation in French oak although a few see only stainless steel. In the past I haven't been a huge fan of the estate's wines as I often found them heavy and over extracted, with bitter, astringent tannins. I saw none of those qualities in the 2005s which are almost universally outstanding and seem to represent a new level of finesse. That said, in general I prefer the estate's stainless steel wines, which tend to exhibit greater expression of terroir as well as varietal trueness. Importer: A Marc de Grazia Selection, various American importers, including Michael Skurnik, Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300, Vin Divino, Chicago, IL; tel. (773) 334-6700, and Estate Wines, Ltd., San Rafael, CA; tel. (415) 492-9411

The 2004 Sauvignon Vieris (aged in oak) naturally possesses more volume and amplitude than the steel-aged Sauvignon Piere. Though expansive in its sweet, honeyed, ripe fruit, the toasted oak detracts from the wine's freshness and covers much of the varietal character. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2010. Importer: A Marc de Grazia Selection, various American importers, including Michael Skurnik, Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300, Vin Divino, Chicago, IL; tel. (773) 334-6700, and Estate Wines, Ltd., San Rafael, CA; tel. (415) 492-9411.