A STRESSED VINE DOES NOT PRODUCE QUALITY
just like a stressed person can not be 100% efficient. We periodically control our vines looking for any eventual nutritional unbalance symptoms. We periodically analyse the leaves to control the present elements. We treat our plants as thoroughbreds. We do not make use of complex fertilizers to cut down expenses, but we give the single elements only when necessary, in different stages, according to the need of the phenological period and thus also reducing the environmental impact.

FOLLOWING THE TRADITION
“As our grandparents did”, is what wine growers say now, forgetting that our grandparents had not all the knowledge and technologies of today at their disposal. And what about today’s viticulture, which certainly is not that of 100 years ago. Specialized vineyards existed only in some hill regions.
Only with a constant care and scientific rigour we can expect and get the 100%, that’s what tradition taught us, that’s how our grandparents Rubini did, putting environmental protection at first priority. And this is not only a science matter, but a great passion that we pour every day into our vineyards.

THE ENVIRONMENT IS THE GREAT HERITAGE THAT WE WILL LEAVE TO OUR CHILDREN Our choice is clear: AGRICULTURE WITH LOW ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT. And this is our philosophy, not only a EC regulation called MEASURE F. Before we carry out any treatment, we consider if it is really necessary on the basis of climatic data and observations on the spot.

The treatments we carry out are below the average of the surrounding territory and we choose low dose and low environmental impact products. We make use technology (Kiekens Whirlwind Holland spraying system), which allows us to reduce the use of parasiticides up to 20% compared to the recommended doses, to reduce water utilization by 85% (only 150 lt/Ha compared to 1000 lt/Ha of the normal amount), thus minimizing the exploitation of a more and more precious natural resource, to reduce drift, thus preventing the release of harmful substances in the environment. We have set ourselves the task of using a more restrictive protocol than the MEASURE F, according to which we do not make use of products classified as of noxious or toxic and of chemical herbicides. The weeding is carried out mechanically through mowing or tillage; this certainly involves a rise in the costs, but environment is worth our utmost care.

THE TERROIR IS THE GENETIC CODE OF WINE As DNA characterizes every living being, so the terroir, an interaction between man, vine and territory, characterizes a wine. Here our men, instead of interacting, accompany the growth and have the task of respecting what the territory gives to the vine. It is like a movie where the protagonists are the vine and this slice of haven called Colli Orientali del Friuli, and where the man is the director, whose job is to discover, harmonize and heighten the actors’ qualities: arenaceous marly soils, northeast winds and mild currents from the Adriatic sea that meet on our hills… They are unique, irreproducible factors and make our wines unique. And these factors have not been modified by human hands: we do not resort to forced agricultural activities such as irrigation, because our only resource is Nature.

GRAPE RIPENING It is a very complex process that involves many factors. There are 25 controls in total to test 10 parameters, which are important for the quality of the grapes. We follow the ripening process constantly, beginning at least one month before the harvesting, in order to choose the optimal period. We make a minimum of 30 controls on every lot of grapes, with 10 more controls on black grapes. Every lot must pass a sensory test, during which the sugar-acid balance, the tannin and grape-seed degree of ripeness are taken into consideration. Too many people have forgotten nowadays that grape-seeds are part of the grape and that consequently influence must preparation.

RESPECTING PRIMARY FLAVOURS
Our white wines distinguish themselves for the intensity of the fruit flavour: the goal is attained only when all the sensations of a mature grape can be tasted in wine. This is obtained through an innovative vinification method that makes use of inert gases. Must praparation happens in total absence of oxygen. Pressing occur under controlled temperature and in total absence of oxtgen. We are the first winery who apply this technology. We make use of selected yeasts. It is not true that they standardize wines, on the contrary they heighten their peculiarities.
Fruitiness is a complex of molecules which develope during the grape ripening process. These molecules are always present in the amount of some dozens of millionths of a gram; it is easy to imagine how extremely easy is to break this delicate balance. We add to must selected Saccaromyces Cerevisiae yeasts, that attack only the sugars and transform them into alcohol, thus respecting the varietal characteristics fermenting under controlled temperature. The native yeasts on the grape often belong to different species or even different genera: so they transform sugars into acetic acid and attack the flavours, which are characteristic of the terroir.

RED WINE PRODUCTION
Black grapes undergo 10 more tests than white grapes on average, because we have to control the anthocyans (red wine colouring agent), the tannins and other parameters, that indicate whether the grapes are suitable for becoming a great ageing wine. Grapes are late harvested, ferment in contact with theirs skins for a minimum of two weeks, and then must is frequently pumped over and punched down, in order to increase the volume of the must/wine in contact with the skins. They age for a minimum of 18 months, during which they alternate periods in wooden barrels, barriques or tonneaux depending on the specific needs of the wine. After this period, wines are sampled and then either they are bottled or they continue to age for another few months or even some years, until they are completely well-matured.

TAKING CARE OF THE DETAILS
Before bottling, wines undergo at least 25 tests, which are made to control their evolution and their correct preservation. Before using them for sealing our wines, corks are checked taking into consideration 3 parameters and making 400 samplings. We have a last generation bottling line. Every bottle is washed with microfiltered water, emptied and filled with nitrogen. Bottling occurs under controlled-atmosphere conditions and the bottles are depressurized before their corking to guarantee the absence of oxygen and their sterility.

ALL IN A GLASS
When we sip a glass of wine, our lips, tongue, palate, throat, nose and eyes should convert in to poetry what once grew outside. Scents, colours, flavours, reflections, fullness and fruitiness offer a true rainbow of sensations, which combine with poetic harmony; wine is more than an aperitif or something which goes well with fine food. Wine is history, tradition, centuries of evolution, failures and glories. Dozens of men and women, millions of raindrops, hundreds of dawns and dusks caressed every single grape, which through our care and our passion become wine.