Babo Pinot Grigio 2024

Babo Pinot Grigio comes from two sites of thirty-year-old vines at San Martino al Tagliamento in Friuli, given eight hours of skin contact before pressing.

Friuli, in the far north-east of Italy, has a long-standing reputation for the country's best white wines, and Justin Bubb points to the diurnal range as the reason: warm days and cold nights through the growing season allow slow ripening and hold aromatics. The vineyards sit at the base of the Alps near Pordenone on a mix of clay and alpine gravel left by alluvial deposits. Friulian Pinot Grigio generally carries more flesh than examples from the Veneto or Trentino, and the eight hours of skin contact in the press deliberately builds on that. Fermentation is in stainless steel and the wine rests five months on lees before bottling, giving texture and a tangy finish rather than the thin, neutral profile common to the category.

Drink over the next two to three years. Serve at 10–12°C with prosciutto and melon, grilled calamari or a simple risotto.

*Every effort is made to ensure the current vintage is accurate; however, variations can occur. If you are after a specific vintage, please contact us prior to ordering.

Type: White Wine
Style: Medium-bodied, Textural, Tangy
Grape Varietal: Pinot Grigio
Tastes Like: Comparable to a premium Pinot Grigio, but with considerably more flesh and grip from the skin contact
Alcohol Percentage: 12.5%
Closure: Screwcap
Size: 750mL
Appellation: Friuli DOC
Region: San Martino al Tagliamento, Friuli, Italy
Terroir: Clay and alpine gravel from alluvial deposits at the base of the Alps near Pordenone, thirty-year-old vines
Aging: Eight hours of skin contact before pressing, fermented in stainless steel and rested five months on lees
Serving Temperature: 10–12℃ – Serve chilled

Babo makes bright, easy-going wines across several Italian regions, with an emphasis on texture and drinkability rather than cellaring.

Friuli, in the far north-east of Italy, has a long-standing reputation for the country’s best white wines, and the diurnal range is the reason: warm days and cold nights through the growing season allow slow ripening and hold aromatics. These vineyards sit at the base of the Alps near Pordenone, at San Martino al Tagliamento, on a mix of clay and alpine gravel left by alluvial deposits, planted with thirty-year-old vines. Friulian Pinot Grigio generally carries more flesh than examples from the Veneto or Trentino, and eight hours of skin contact in the press deliberately builds on that.

Charcuterie: Perfect with prosciutto and melon or a plate of San Daniele
Seafood: Excellent with grilled calamari, prawns or white fish
Risotto: Pairs beautifully with a simple risotto or asparagus dishes
Vegetarian: Ideal with frico, potato dishes or grilled vegetables

Montasio: The Friulian cheese, firm and nutty, a match of place
Ricotta Affumicata: Smoked and savoury, meeting the wine’s texture
Fresh Mozzarella: Soft and milky, balanced by the wine’s tangy finish
Young Pecorino: Mildly salty and firm, complementing the wine’s freshness

Frico (Friulian Cheese and Potato Cake)

Ingredients (Serves 4):

• 400g waxy potatoes, peeled and coarsely grated
• 300g Montasio cheese, half young and half aged, coarsely grated
• 1 onion, very finely sliced
• 50g butter
• 1 tbsp neutral oil
• Salt and cracked black pepper
• Polenta, to serve

Instructions:

1. Melt the butter with the oil in a heavy non-stick pan and cook the onion very slowly until soft and sweet, around 15 minutes.
2. Add the grated potato, season, and cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes, turning occasionally, until tender.
3. Scatter the grated cheese evenly over the potato and press the mixture down into a flat cake.
4. Cook without stirring for 8 to 10 minutes, until the underside forms a deep golden crust.
5. Slide the frico onto a plate, invert the pan over it and flip it back.
6. Cook the second side for a further 8 minutes until equally crisp.
7. Rest for a few minutes so it firms up before cutting.
8. Cut into wedges and serve hot with polenta.

The dish of the Friulian hills, and a natural partner for a Pinot Grigio from the same place. The eight hours of skin contact give this wine the flesh and tangy finish needed to cut through a cake of melted Montasio, where a thinner example of the variety would simply disappear.