TENIMENTI CIVA was established in Friuli – a region in the north-east of Italy – as a result of Valerio Civa’s desire to invest in a beautiful land with great potential, with a project to develop and promote traditional grape varieties, in particular Ribolla Gialla, which together with Friulano, Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso, Schioppettino and other local varieties, represent the culture and identity of winemaking in Friuli. In 2016 he bought two estates: at Bellazoia di Povoletto and ManzanoSan Giovanni al Natisone, both in the Colli Orientali del Friuli, in the Province of Udine, and a vineyard planted to Schioppettino, in Ravosa. He became a producer in the Colli Orientali del Friuli only after thirty years of experience and dedication in the world of wine. The entrepreneurial adventure of Valerio Civa has its roots In the 1980s when he founded EFFE.CI Srl in Parma, a company working in the beverage trade, and was among the first in Italy to introduce quality wine into supermarkets.
Following the consolidation of working relationships with supermarket chains, many top Italian wineries chose EFFE CI as their partner and distributor, and the company – now called CIVAGROUP ITALIA –, rapidly expanded to become the leader in the off-trade channel of still and sparkling wines, with an extensive portfolio of prestigious Italian brands.
Bellazoia is the name of a small village in the eastern part of the Povoletto municipality, not far from Udine. This delightful land of vineyards, deciduous woods and streams, lies between the Julian Prealps and the high plains of Friuli. Here, in the heart of the Friuli Colli Orientali DOC zone we find the headquarters of TENIMENTI CIVA .
The soil formed by alternating marl (clay and limestone) and sandstone (cemented sand), rich in minerals, is known locally as ponca. Here, in an area of about 33 hectares of vineyards, in addition to the native varieties of Ribolla Gialla, Friulano and Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso, we also find plantings of the international varieties that have been an integral part of Friulan wine production for some time now: Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.
In the southernmost part of the Friuli Colli Orientali DOC zone, in Manzano and San Giovanni al Natisone, Ribolla Gialla, the winery’s treasure, is grown on a single plot of 23 hectares. In this area, where marl prevails over sandstone, it is not uncommon to find fossil remains, a tangible sign that it was once under the sea. The climate is much warmer than in Bellazoia, but a cool sea breeze gives the vines respite from the summer heat. In both estates we see a landscape of gently rolling hills, since marl crumbles easily, eroded by wind and water, and the elevation is never particularly high. Precisely the fragility of the land has forced generations of farmers to terrace the hills in order to plant the vines, giving the landscape a distinctive, evocative appearance.
Ronc Marin are Premium Still and Sparkling Wines from Friuli.