Livio Felluga

Italy Friuli

Wine from the Abbey of the Roses.
Livio Felluga produces an impressive cru from the historic vineyards of Abbazia di Rosazzo.

Vines and roses, both deeply symbolic plants, are found side by side at the majestic Abbazia di Rosazzo in the eastern part of Friuli. Abbazia means abbey in English and Rosazzo rose in the local dialect. When Livio Felluga leased the vineyards of the abbey from the archdiocese of Udine, his family had to assume the responsibility for its unique, historic rose garden as well.

The grapes for Felluga’s eponymous wine, Abbazia di Rosazzo, which was first launched in 2011, grow on some eighteen hectares around the abbey. Most are planted with the typical, autochthonous varieties of Friuli such Ribolla Gialla, Friulano, Malvasia Istriana, Picolit and Pignolo, but there is also a bit of Pinot Bianco, Sauvignon and Chardonnay as well.

Felluga’s Abbazia project is thus a kind of fusion between Friuli, Bordeaux and Burgundy: Bordeaux, because only one wine is produced; Burgundy, because it is a single vineyard ‘cru’; and Friuli because of the indigenous varieties.

From fermentation to bottling, this unique wine spends its entire life in oak vats. As Andrea Felluga explains, “Abbazia di Rossazo is made for connoisseurs of ripe and complex wines”. Intensely yellow in colour, it exudes aromas of ripe fruit, spices and herbs such as sage and thyme. In addition, compared with many whites from the region, it ages extremely well.

Beyond Abbazia di Rosazzo, Livio Felluga’s range also includes Terre Alte, a second iconic blend, as well as single variety wines from Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon, Friulano, Chardonnay, Ribolla Gialla, Refosco and Picolit. Sharis, Illivio, a rosé and the reds, Vertigo and Sossò, complete the offer.

Livio Felluga
Friuli, Italy
liviofelluga.com