''Collio Goriziano'' (sometimes designated simply as ''Collio'' or ''Collio DOC'') is an Italian wine and winemaking region in northeast Italian region of

Friuli-Venezia Giulia (man), it, Friulana (woman), it, Giuliano (man), it, Giuliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_t ...

, located in the northernmost part of the Province of Gorizia, in the Italian part of the Gorizia Hills, which extend to neighboring Slovenia. It has been recognized with the official the status of '' DOC''. ''Colli Goriziano'' predominantly produces white wines with Friulano, Ribolla Gialla,

Malvasia Istriana Malvasia (, also known as Malvazia) is a group of wine grape varieties grown historically in the Mediterranean region, Balearic Islands, Canary Islands and the island of Madeira, but now grown in many of the winemaking regions of the world ...

Chardonnay Chardonnay (, , ) is a green-skinned grape variety used in the production of white wine. The variety originated in the Burgundy wine region of eastern French wine, France, but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from English wine, Englan ...

Pinot bianco Pinot blanc is a white wine grape. It is a point genetic mutation of Pinot noir. Pinot noir is genetically unstable and will occasionally experience a point mutation in which a vine bears all black fruit except for one cane which produces whit ...

, Pinot grigio, and

Sauvignon blanc is a green-skinned grape variety that originates from the Bordeaux region of France. The grape most likely gets its name from the French words ''sauvage'' ("wild") and ''blanc'' ("white") due to its early origins as an indigenous grape in ...

being the leading varietals. Red wine is also produced under the ''Collio Rosso'' designation and is usually a blend of

Merlot Merlot is a dark blue–colored wine grape variety, that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name ''Merlot'' is thought to be a diminutive of ''merle'', the French name for the blackbird, probably a reference to the ...

Cabernet franc Cabernet Franc is one of the major black grape varieties worldwide. It is principally grown for blending with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the Bordeaux style, but can also be vinified alone, as in the Loire's Chinon. In addition to being us ...

, and

Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebanon' ...

.M. Ewing-Mulligan & E. McCarthy ''Italian Wines for Dummies'' pg 132-140 Hungry Minds 2001 The name ''"Collio"'' is taken from the Italian word ''colli'' which means hillsides and describes the terrain of the ''Collio Goriziano'' region. The ''Collio'' extends from the Judrio river in the west, where it borders the ''

Colli Orientali del Friuli The Colli Orientali del Friuli is a ''Denominazione di origine controllata'' (DOC) located in the Italian wine region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. The region is located in the province of Udine and is sub-divided into three main sections; Ramandolo ...

'' DOC, to the Slovenian border on the east. To the south, it is bordered by the ''Isonzo del Friuli'' DOC. Most of the region's vineyards are centered on the '' comune'' of Cormons. The soil of the region is composed of calcareous

marl Marl is an earthy material rich in carbonate minerals, clays, and silt. When hardened into rock, this becomes marlstone. It is formed in marine or freshwater environments, often through the activities of algae. Marl makes up the lower part o ...

and flysch sandstone. The 4th largest DOC in the

in terms of areas planted, it is also the 4th leading producer in terms of volume, trailing the ''Friuli Grave'', ''Isonzo'' and ''

'' region in production. Over 85% of the ''Collio'' production is in white wine grape varieties. While still low in comparison to the rest of Italy, the yields in the ''Collio Goriziano'' are higher than the 3.5 tons an

acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imp ...

average of the ''Friuli-Venezia Giulia''. In the ''Collio'', the yields average around 4.4 tons/acre (77 hectolitres/ hectare) though some quality conscious producers have lower yields.J. Robinson (ed) ''"The Oxford Companion to Wine"'' Third Edition pg 187 Oxford University Press 2006 Winemaker Mario Schiopetto was one of the first to incorporate German wine-making techniques like

cold fermentation Brewing is the production of beer by steeping a starch source (commonly cereal grains, the most popular of which is barley) in water and fermenting the resulting sweet liquid with yeast. It may be done in a brewery by a commercial brewer ...

to white wine production in the ''Collio Goriziano''. Today, winemaking on the region is very technologically advanced with refrigerated fermentation tanks,

pneumatic Pneumatics (from Greek ‘wind, breath’) is a branch of engineering that makes use of gas or pressurized air. Pneumatic systems used in Industrial sector, industry are commonly powered by compressed air or compressed inert gases. A central ...

wine presses, and

centrifugal Centrifugal (a key concept in rotating systems) may refer to: *Centrifugal casting (industrial), Centrifugal casting (silversmithing), and Spin casting (centrifugal rubber mold casting), forms of centrifigual casting *Centrifugal clutch *Centrifug ...

bottling systems. The objective of most ''Collio Goriziano'' winemakers is to maximize the fresh fruit and pure varietal characteristic of the grape. To that extent, oak influence is not widely used in this region though some winemaking are experimenting with its use and different blends of grape varieties to produce more complex wine.

References

{{coord, 45, 59, 11, N, 13, 29, 33, E, region:IT-36_type:landmark_source:kolossus-dewiki, display=title Italian DOC Wine regions of Italy Geography of Friuli-Venezia Giulia