I Clivi di Ferdinando Zanusso, Friulano "San Lorenzo"

Let’s cut right to the chase: I Clivi makes some of the greatest white wines in Italy. And, just so we’re clear, that’s not damning them with faint praise—their wines, especially those from the native Friuliano grape, stand toe-to-toe with the greats of the Old World, be it white Burgundy, Sancerre, Austrian Grüner Veltliner, and so forth. Overall, the white wines of Friuli-Venezia Giulia (and some of their “orange” siblings) have been demanding entry into the world’s elite ranks for a while now, only to be denied entry by gatekeepers with a badly outdated image of Italian white wine. Well, we’re back with an affordable, and relatively new, bottling from I Clivi that demands an audience: It’s an old-vine, single-vineyard Friulano from a site in the heart of Friuli’s Collio DOC—arguably the top white wine terroir in Italy—and it (over) delivers on every level. There’s complex aromas, profound minerality, mouth-watering acid, and serious structure. It’s an incredibly accomplished white w