Hand selected in the field on the 19th of April, the Friulano was de-stemmed and fermented as cool whole berries. The fermentation took place entirely in amphora without any additions of sulphur or yeast. Turbul remained on skins until the first day of spring when the skins were gently basket pressed rich. The wine was lightly sulphured and left to mature in seasoned large format French puncheons. . The wine was bottled after a single delicate rack twelve months later without any fining or filtration. We used  a diam cork closure to assist in the persistent gentle oxidation of this phenolic rich wine.

A modern natural wine celebrating extended maceration on skins before oxidative ageing in barrel and amphora. Engaging, diaphanous aromas of angelica blossom, honey, parsley root, lemon rind with a peppery spice entice on the nose. On the palate, the textural thrill of Turbul becomes apparent. Sleek, creamy, and beautifully poised, the richness from extended skin contact balanced with Friulano’s fine acidity, achieved by strict crop levels to assure acid rich grapes with thick burnished skins. Try with antipasti, raw fish, or creamy pasta to reap full benefit.

Turbul is Friuli dialect for cloudy, a name suggested by Nikolas a then young Friuli winemaker working with Tom McCarthy at Quealy for the first vintage in 2011. These wines are naturally phenolic thus require no protein stability (bentonite) and of course, there is a desire to leave a watermark of this natural process of clarification and stability, the cloudy sheen.

Our Friulano cuttings came from the vineyard of Denis Pasut in Mildura. His planting material was the original Allan Antcliff collection at Merebin which famously was removed for a parking lot. Denis knew the variety from his Slovenia homeland and planted a few rows. At the time of us meeting Denis, we knew of no other Friulano, and interestingly new clones are yet to be imported into Australia. Kevin and Tom learnt about Friulano from their travels and vintages in Friuli and the reverence local winemakers attend this variety. Friulano produces a big bunch of big berries with a thick, waxy skin. This attribute requires strategic bud selection, shoot selection in Spring and Summer as well as careful fruit selection of wholesome berries and bunches at harvest. Friulano ripens late in Autumn, and as the leaves fall away, the fruit is entirely exposed to the cool sunshine. The bunches, ever so slightly, dehydrate, becoming lighter and looser as they hang, darkening to a copper gold, becoming perfect for skin contact wine.