Colle Duga, a winery located in Zegla, a small agglomeration six kilometers northeast of Cormons, one of the most important centers of the Gorizia Collio, owes its name to that of the hill on which it insists the headquarters, called Duga, from immemorial time, by the ancestors. We are a few kilometers from the border with Slovenia and here Damian Princic manages his 10 hectares of property since 1997, with vineyards in Zegla, Novali and Russiz, all within the municipality of Cormons.
Growing in the highest section of the rolling hills of Collio, the vineyards are rich in the famous Ponca, a particular type of land crucial to solve the problems of viticulture in those areas. The various layers of sandstone and marl of which it is composed allow the Ponca to drain all the water fallen in this region famous for the rainfall (the highest in Italy), with the collaboration of Bora, the cold Baltic wind blowing from the Gulf of Trieste in the North/Northeast direction which dries the residual humidity of the vineyards.
The vineyards of Colle Duga are planted for 75% with white grapes, and for the rest with Merlot, with some plants over 50 years old, and with a planting and replanting density of about 5000 vines per hectare. In the vineyard Darmian follows a philosophy based on common sense, by virtue of which he tries to use the minimum amount of chemistry possible, while not considering its total abandonment effective for the ecosystem. From the same common sense are inspired the various cellar practices: soft pressing, cleaning of cold musts for decanting and fermentation at controlled temperatures are just some of the operations put in place by Damian.
One of Darmian’s most appreciated wines is Chardonnay, whose grapes, oriented towards North-South in order to have a homogeneous exposure to the sun, insist on a vineyard in Zegla at 90 meters above sea level. After the vinification just described, a part of this wine (15-20%) is aged in new barriques, before bottling and marketing.
The 2018 vintage has a color between straw and golden, with an olfactory range that opens on notes of mango, apricot in syrup, strawberry tree honey and flint, followed by toasted chestnuts, eucalyptus, hay and dried white flowers, with conclusive echoes iodized and slightly boisée. The main feature of the palate is a beautiful mineral flavor, with the counterchant of balsamic freshness and softness; all enriched by the return of yellow fruit, honey and iodine that accompany the sip to a good length closure.
Rating: 86/100
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