2024 Cala Bennati Pinot Grigio Friuli 750 ml

Friuli Venezia Giulia sits in Italy’s northeastern corner at the foot of the Alps. It is a small region with an outsized reputation among the wine trade, consistently producing whites of a precision, aromatic intensity, and mineral depth that place it in rare company globally. Pinot Grigio here looks and tastes nothing like its mass-market counterparts—it is a serious wine from serious terrain.

The story of how Friuli earned that reputation is one of the great chapters in modern Italian wine. In the 1970s and 80s, a generation of visionary producers—Jermann, Schiopetto, Gravner—dismantled the old playbook of oxidized, characterless whites and replaced it with precise, terroir-driven wines that could hold their own against the best of Burgundy and Alsace. Their influence transformed the entire region and established Friuli as the benchmark for Italian white wine craftsmanship.

The Isonzo DOC, where Cala Bennati is grown, sits at the heart of that tradition. The alluvial plain of the Isonzo River is composed of ancient deposits of calcified sand and gravel—soils of exceptional drainage and mineral richness that give the best Friuli whites their signature freshness and sense of place.

The estate behind Cala Bennati is Tenuta Villanova, founded in 1499 and the oldest continuously operating winery in Friuli Venezia Giulia. For generations the Bennati family farmed this land and sold their grapes to others. Gregory Bennati, the founder’s great-grandson, reclaimed full ownership in 2023 and launched the Cala Bennati label—committing the estate to sustainable farming, solar energy, and no artificial additives—to bring these wines to a broader audience on his family’s own terms.

The 2024 Pinot Grigio is a beautiful expression of everything Friuli does best: white florals and white peach on the nose, Sicilian lemon peel, and a breath of sea air from the nearby Adriatic. The palate is vibrant and precise, with joyful acidity and a finish that lingers.

Pour it with grilled branzino, linguine alle vongole, or simply as the aperitivo that sets the table for everything that follows.