i Clivi was born when Ferdinando Zanusso bought two neglected old vineyards in Friuli in the early 1990s, returning from a long career abroad with a single idea: to make wine as transparent as possible, shaped in the vineyard and left untouched in the cellar.
Backstory
After roughly four decades working in Africa, Ferdinando Zanusso settled in his wife's native Friuli and set about restoring old vines. His son Mario, thoughtful and intensely focused on the work, joined him, and the two run the estate together. Their guiding aim is purest terroir expression, with nothing added or taken away.
The Region
The estate spans two of Friuli's finest zones near the Slovenian border. Around eight hectares sit on the Gramogliano hill at Corno di Rosazzo in the Colli Orientali del Friuli, while another four lie a few miles away on the slopes of Mount Quarin at Brazzano, in the Collio. The Brazan parcel faces southwest, the Galea parcel southeast.
Vineyards & Farming
The vines are mostly indigenous varieties, led by Friulano, the grape once called Tocai, with most plants between 40 and 80 years old. These old vines yield tiny crops of concentrated grapes, farmed organically and without dogma.
Winemaking
True to Ferdinando's vision, the wines are made to reflect soil, climate and tradition rather than cellar technique, prized for an ability to age that recalls mature white Burgundy.
The Wines
The estate produces around 50,000 bottles a year. The two flagship bottlings, Galea from the Colli Orientali and Brazan from the Collio, are now made from 100 percent Friulano, alongside historic plantings of Malvasia Istriana, Ribolla, Verduzzo and a Merlot-based red.
