It is June 1987 and Josko Gravner has just returned from California and can’t wait to arrive in Oslavia and see his beloved Ribolla Gialla vineyards again. Californian wine was rapidly rising; it seemed that these wines had a perfect structure and unmatched market success. However, according to Gravner, the reality was quite different because the best Californian cuvées didn’t touch his soul at all: there was too much of everything. On this journey, he had seen his life path reflected like in a mirror. Starting from way back in 1973 when he acquired the family winery and revolutionized everything. He initially replaced the old barrels with steel tanks and later moved on to new French oak barriques. Success was not lacking; in fact, his bottles were quickly sold out, but Gravner did not feel satisfied. Josko wondered how he could regain his authenticity as a producer who respected tradition. It would take him a full ten years to find the right answer, but the effects of that answer would overwhelm the Italian wine industry, and beyond, like a true tsunami. At the same time, it reaffirmed the identity of a small and then little-known country.
"Divine sign or simple misfortune?"
The winemakers from the region and the nearby Slovenia had a secret weapon: long maceration on the skins. Allowing white grapes to macerate in contact with the skins for an extended period, a week or more, not only guaranteed the extraction of flavors and aromas in greater quantity but also provided the wine with tannin, body, and remarkable structure. Gravner was increasingly fascinated by this tradition that came from distant Georgia, which spoke of buried amphorae (called Qvevri). In 1994, he had his first trial of macerated wines and realized that the key to success was simplicity and a return to the roots of winemaking. Gravner applied on a larger scale the results of this trial when, a few years later—in 1996, Oslavia was hit by two terrible hailstorms that caused him to lose about 95% of his beloved Ribolla Gialla. Was it a divine sign or a simple misfortune? We cannot say, but what remained was left to macerate for a long time in the must. These few liters were the first core of Gravner's breakthrough. The first vintage to be marketed was 1997, and starting that year, Josko began using only large Slavonian oak barrels for both fermentation and aging. Only and exclusively the beloved Ribolla Gialla remained in maceration for twelve days; the wine obtained was bottled directly without being filtered, resulting in a hazy, dark, almost amber wine with intoxicating aromas of spices, dried herbs, and autumn fruits with honeyed notes.
These wines were not only completely different from those produced in Collio at that time, but also from all those previously bottled throughout Italy. All this caused a devastating uproar for Gravner himself; Gambero Rosso indeed thundered, “Gravner has gone crazy.” In that vintage, 80% of the wine was sent back, perhaps not fully understood. It was a bitter pill to swallow, but Gravner was sure he was on the right track, so he continued with his production. The rest of the story was a crescendo to the point where Gravner managed to have Qvevri shipped directly from Georgia to continue his macerations and his idea of wine, and he also began to plant only his beloved Ribolla Gialla.
Finally, Josko Gravner, a visionary winemaker, labeled as crazy and heretical, from a small village on the Italian side of Collio, has managed to bring macerated white wines back to the table, reclaiming a lost cultural identity. Cultural identity can take many forms and can relate indiscriminately to art, cuisine, language, a connection to one’s own region, or, as often happens, a combination of all of this. In this case, the encounter between the vision and stubbornness of a man in a small territory of Collio and the cultivation and vinification of Ribolla Gialla has produced an exceptional wine.
"What would Oslavia be without a glass of Orange Wine?"
What would Oslavia be without a glass of Orange Wine made from the maceration with Ribolla Gialla, and today with the new flours produced from the pomace of Ribolla Gialla? That's right, the pomace of Ribolla Gialla from Oslavia has transformed from a product intended for distillation into a noble ingredient of a special flour. The pomace is dried, ground, and prepared to be mixed with various ancient grains. The goal is to enhance the local agricultural culture to ensure consumers receive a quality product through sustainable farming. Thus, guaranteeing, throughout the entire supply chain from the earth to the product, a food transformation that respects the environment and prioritizes consumer protection. The processing method of Ribolla Gialla pomace flour ensures unique characteristics for the product: quick cooking, the possibility of being consumed even by various intolerant individuals, and pairing with multiple recipes: if I told you Ribolla Gialla Tagliolino with porcini mushrooms and a nice glass of Gravner, how would that sound?