Bitter Pops® Sfera Bianco White Blend Italy 1 Liter – 8761307103476

From the Alps to the Mediterranean, SFERA is a collaboration with small certified-organic farmers to bottle Liters in limited runs. This production of Bianco is made in collaboration with I Clivi. They are located in Friuli Venezia Giulia in the area of Colli Orientali appellation. It’s on the last Italian side with Slovenian borders. The Adriatic sea is only 30 km away and the vineyards have been there since ages; the oldest is 70 years old. Ribolla Gialla is the local grape and the land here has plenty of limestone and mountain’s sediments. Ocean breeze and minerality are combined with a gentle creamy texture given by the lees.

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REGION: Friuli Venezia-Giulia

GROWING AREA: Colli Orientali del Friuli

FARMING: Certified organic by CSQA # IT-BIO-021 VINEYARD: Galea, 4 Ha

ALTITUDE: 200 m / 656 ft SOILS: Limestone and clay for soil composition 

VARIETIES: 100% Ribolla Gialla VINE AGE: 30 years old

VINE TRAINING: Guyot HARVEST DATE: Mid-September

YEASTS: Native

VINIFICATION: Direct pressing of the grapes; fermentation in steel tanks for 14 days with NO temperature control. Elevage on its lees for 6 months with weekly battonages. Racking and natural decant of the sediment.

SULPHUR: 30 mg/l added at the end of fermentation and 30 mg/L before bottling

CLARIFICATION: no ALCOHOL: 12.5%

ANNUAL PRODUCTION: 1,200 cases

A slightly chilled down liter bottle with a crown cap is just the thing for an apertivo or an impromptu dinner. We’ve been searching for the right PortoVino producer for Italian liters for a while. We knew we wanted with buckets of low alcohol deliciousness, yet not in that international glou-glou style where the soil, grape, and terroir gets washed out.

Sfera’s at once terroir-driven, but also an interesting take on liters, and bottling wine in general. As Sfera says on their quirky site: Cosmic Verve in a Grounded Italian Liter…From the Alps to the Mediterranean.  Sfera collaborates with multiple small certified-organic farmers to bottle liters in limited runs, and are keen to give the producer credit by clearly putting the winery’s name and providence on the back label.

This all means that the producers change, but front labels don’t. Another constant is that the wines are naturally made, and fall into certain guidelines that are lab tested before and after bottling. It’s a win-win, small certified organic producers get to do a fun liter project, and we get to explore Italy. 

These are great introduction to natural wines, grape varieties, and growing areas. Check out Sfera Litro’ site for a catalog of all their bottlings, including the future ones on deck.

https://www.sferalitro.com/