From: Friuli, Italy
Varietal: 60% Ribolla Gialla, 30% Verduzzo, and 10% Picolit
The Ciallabianco is a blend of 60% Ribolla Gialla, 30% Verduzzo, and 10% Picolit, fermented in oak barrels followed by 11 months maturation in barrel and a further 6-12 months in bottle.
Taste: Light straw in color, the nose is complex with aromas of pear, apple, and jasmine. On the palate, the wine is well-rounded with a broad acidity and an elegant mouthfeel. Enjoyable now, the Ciallabianco will age gracefully with proper cellaring.
Pairing: Enjoy with ham, white meats, and full flavored vegetables. One of our favorite pairings with this charming and rich white wine is a cauliflower-based one, from Vegetables Unleashed. Titled “Cauliflower with Béchamel,” it serves six people, and is decadent and delicious. In the author’s words, “People have a love-hate relationship with cauliflower. The love comes when you cook it with care and get those florets tender and sweet; the hate comes from boiling it so long that you release those sulfuric compounds that make cauliflower smell like a bad egg. I was lucky; my mom knew how to handle cauliflower. Sometimes she served it with a sauce of olive oil and garlic and smoked paprika, but what I remember most is her cauliflower with béchamel sauce. She'd put it under the broiler- sometimes with cheese too, sometimes without--until a beautiful brown crust formed. To this day, it's one of my favorite ways to feed my family on a cold autumn or winter night.”
Ronchi di Cialla is an historical Friulian Estate and it is strictly a family business. Ronchi, in the dialect of Friuli, means hills cultivated with vines. Cialla is a small valley surrounded by woods with chestnut, oak and wild cherry trees, in the D.O.C. Colli Orientali del Friuli area. The company philosophy has always been to work only with indigenous varieties, such as Ribolla, Refosco, Schioppettino, Verduzzo and Picolit that in the Cru' Cialla find the perfect environment. After 40 years Ronchi di Cialla has a well established reputation on the market as a producer of some of the finest age-worthy wines of Friuli. The estate is certified as "biodiversity friendly" by the World Biodiversity Association, meaning they are commited to a progressive increase in biological diversity; conservation by continually using natural practices and farming with minimal interference where possible.
