Verduzzo Friulano

A white grape native to Friuli-Venezia Giulia, historically grown alongside — and often confused with — the unrelated Verduzzo Trevigiano from neighboring Treviso province, both once loosely called simply "Verduzzo." DNA profiling in 2010-2011 established the two are clearly distinct varieties despite the shared old name and occasional co-planting; Verduzzo Friulano (MASAF scheda 256, admitted to the register 25/05/1970) is the more aromatic and flavorful of the pair, while Verduzzo Trevigiano is the higher-yielding one.

Its finest expression is Ramandolo, a sweet dessert wine from a small hillside zone in Friuli that earned DOCG status in 2001 and is considered one of the lightest-bodied, most elegant dessert wines made anywhere in Italy. Sweet styles show honeyed, floral aromas with runny-honey richness balanced by pleasant acidity; drier styles lean toward herbal and cedar notes. It spread into several of eastern Veneto's DOCs and IGTs alongside Verduzzo Trevigiano, with which it is frequently blended in wines labeled simply "Verduzzo."