EMBRACING THE PAST

GRAVNER RUJNO

While natural wines might seem like a recent phenomenon, it is, in fact, a return to ancient methods of vinification. Josko Gravner was one of the first in Italy to embrace this, dropping an already-successful portfolio of “outsider” international grapes to grow indigenous varieties in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, a north-east Italian region bordering Austria, Slovenia and the Adriatic Sea. The Rujno is one of Gravner’s top reds, made only during the best vintages with a blend of merlot and cabernet sauvignon, and fermented on the skins in open oak vats. Not many vintages of Rujno are available on the market, with the last one being 2003.