Castello di Spessa – a jewel in the heart of the Collio Gorizia

The beautiful sunny winter days are perfect for visiting the wineries of Friuli, even more if they are based in a castle!
In this period, the activity is reduced because the wine is at rest in the barrels and turns to vine plants for dry pruning.

And that’s how we took the opportunity to visit the Castello di Spessa in the municipality of Capriva del Friuli (GO) which welcomes guests in a building from the 1200s and offers an exceptional panorama of the vineyards, the golf course, the facilities neighboring accommodations, the Julian Alps to the north and the presence of the sea to the south.
To start enjoying the atmosphere of the place, we went to the vineyards owned by the company for a pleasant walk. A warm sun has mitigated the temperature made rigid by the presence of the Bora, the characteristic wind of these areas that comes from the arctic areas and that in Trieste reaches 150-160 km / h.

The vineyards visited are called “Vigna dei 3 Pinot” as there are Pinot Bianco, Grigio and Nero plants that will contribute to the production of the many wines that we will savor later. Following this thought, we set off to reach the most important part of every winery: the cellar!
And in this case the cellar is an example of beauty and suitable environment as it consists of two levels: the first was excavated in medieval times for the production of wine while the second level, 18 meters below the ground, was excavated by the Italian army in 1939 with military bunker functions.
It is accessed through a long and steep staircase flanked by a “treadmill” which facilitates the movement of bottles and grapes.
The rooms are large and evocative where the bottles produced by the company and the barrels where the wine ages are placed. We were able to preview the Ribolla Gialla produced with the Classic Method which will presumably be put on the market during 2021.

The desire to try the wines was great and we were then accompanied to the tasting room where 5 wines from the D.O.C. line were waiting for us. Collio (the company also has Isonzo D.O.C. wines)
The tasting was led by the Sommelier who presented 3 white and 2 red wines: Sparkling Ribolla Gialla (Pertè), Friulano (Collio DOC Friulano), Pinot Bianco (Santarosa), Pinot Nero (Grand) and finally Merlot (Rosaris). We especially appreciated the freshness, the aromas and the drinkability.

To dispose of calories we took advantage of the castle garden and its avenues and we were able to enjoy a wonderful 360 ° view of the surrounding landscape.
The Collio of Gorizia always offers an opportunity to relax and discover places to savor the welcome that Friuli offers.