Pinot Grigio from high altitude.

And so it is, literally and figuratively, for this Girlan Classici Pinot Grigio is grown in the hilly vineyards of Cornaiano at an altitude ranging from 450 to 500 meters above sea level in well-ventilated vineyards. The area in which they are planted is rich in minerals, the result of sedimentation during the Ice Age. Partly due to this, it is a Pinot Grigio of outstanding class.

Pinot Grigio has small bunches of rust-colored, almost brown to grayish grapes. They belong to the same family as the Burgundian Pinots. The Girlan Classici Pinot Grigio is pale lemon-yellow in color. On the nose, fruity aromas of apple and pear. Further notes of almond and some spiciness (chervil). On the palate, the wine is soft in structure, juicy, and lively. It has a truly soft, delicate palate that is a beautiful accompaniment to asparagus and poached fish, for example, salmon trout with a green herb sauce. The wine is clearly fresher and more elegant than its counterparts from Veneto. A gastronomic wine.

Alto Adige

The Alto Adige in the remote, mountainous north of Italy lies perhaps the most idiosyncratic high-altitude region there is. Yes, you are technically oriented in Italy, but forget pasta, tanned youngsters on Vespas, and your
Italian in high school. This is South Tyrol, a stone's throw from the Austrian and Swiss borders and surrounded by the Dolomites.
The wines of Alto Adige are just as unique as the environment. It is isolated, with high-altitude viticulture occurring at the extreme. Here, there is an endless variety of stony, well-drained, south-facing slopes. A wide range of grape varieties has been cultivated here for a long time and intensively. Common varieties include Pinot Bianco (Pinot Blanc in France and possibly the best white grape of Alto Adige), Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, Sauvignon, Traminer, and Riesling.

Girlan

Girlan is one of the best grower collectives in the region and produces both white and red wines. The cooperative was also one of the first collectives in Alto Adige to impose strict standards on its growers regarding the quality of their fruit and yields. More than 70% of the wines from the region are produced by such cooperatives. A number of them, including Girlan, manage a magnificent range of the region's most beautiful sites. This is not a new phenomenon and has nothing to do with the cooperatives normally found in France or other parts of the wine world.

Over the past 10 years, Girlan has been hard at work establishing itself as one of the most interesting names in Alto Adige. It was the arrival of new cellar master Gehard Kofler in 2006 that really got things moving. In 2008, Girlan had five wines competing for Gambero Rosso’s ‘Tre Bicchieri’ (‘Three Glasses’), one of which won. When you visit this producer for the first time, you are struck by the freshness, delicacy, and aromatic complexity of the wines, reflecting the great locations, low yields, and Girlan’s spotlessly clean cellar.