Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesThis wine celebrates its 25th anniversary in this vintage, and as usual, it's a laid-back and simple white that is linear and bright. There are interesting grassy tones in the Kris 2018 Pinot Grigio with blasts of citrus. This bargain-priced screwcap bottle is a great summer picnic partner for deviled eggs or a big platter of chips and guacamole.
KRIS wine is handcrafted in Alto Adige using grapes sourced from Italy’s most esteemed growing regions. The winery is located in the hillside town of Montagna, where culture is a unique reflection of Germanic heritage and Italian nationality. An ideal combination of traditional winemaking artistry and modern technology is used to blend each of the KRIS wines. The timeless and inspiring KRIS labels emphasize the role of the sun in ripening the grapes to perfection, the human hand in crafting the wine, and the lips that savor the wine. Riccardo Schweizer, a native of Alto Adige, studied cubism in Paris under Pablo Picasso and Joan Miró. The original paintings were given by Schweizer to his friend, the KRIS winery’s founder for his birthday.
The source of some of Italy’s best and most distinctive white wines, Friuli-Venezia Giulia is where Italian, Germanic and Slavic cultures converge. The styles of wines produced in this region of Italy's far north-east reflect this merging of cultures. Often shortened to just “Friuli,” the area is divided into many distinct subzones, including Friuli Grave, Colli Orientali del Friuli, Collio Goriziano and Carso. The flat valley of Friuli Grave is responsible for a large proportion of the region’s wine production, particularly the approachable Pinot grigio and the popular Prosecco. The best vineyard locations are often on hillsides, as in Colli Orientali del Friuli or Collio. In general, Friuli boasts an ideal climate for viticulture, with warm sunny days and chilly nights, which allow grapes to ripen slowly and evenly.
In Colli Orientali, the specialty is crisp, flavorful white wine made from indigenous varieities like Friulano (formerly known as Tocai Friulano), Ribolla gialla and Malvasia Istriana.
Red wines, though far less common here, can be quite good, especially when made from the deeply colored, rustic Refosco variety. In Collio Goriziano, which abutts Slovenia, many of the same varieties are planted. International varieties like Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc are also common, but they tend to be Loire-like in style with herbaceous character and mellow tannins. Carso’s star grape is the red Teranno, notable for being rich in iron content and historically consumed for health purposes. It has an earthy, meaty profile and is often confused with the distinct variety Refosco.
This “white” variety is actually born out of a mutation of Pinot Noir and shows a unique rosy, purplish hue upon full ripeness. The grape boasts two versions of its name and two generally distinct styles: the crisp, Italian Pinot Grigio and the softer French Pinot Gris. Somm Secret—Given the color of its berries and aromatic potential, Pinot Grigio is commonly used to make "orange wines." An orange wine is a white wine made with fermentation on its skins (similar to red wine making), leading to n orange hued wine with ephemeral aromas and extra complexity.
