Latimis and the Wines of Ronco del Gelso

My relationship with the wines of Ronco del Gelso began in August 2020, two days after Inter’s defeat in the Europa League final. I was meeting friends in Trieste, and one of them, who was quite knowledgeable about wines, drank too much and, falling down the stairs, broke his arm. It was a great shame, and the outing ended prematurely and on a somber note. To lift my spirits, I went to Gran Malabar, a place with an excellent selection of wines by the glass, and there I tasted Ronco del Gelso’s Chardonnay Siet Vignis for the first time.

I must admit that at the time, my knowledge of wines was quite limited; apart from a good understanding of Collio, I knew very little (and we all know that the pleasure of wine comes from sharing diverse experiences). It’s possible that this Chardonnay was one of the first creamy whites I encountered. In any case, that pleasant experience was followed by a crate purchased in 2021, which proved very satisfying, and then another in 2022, accompanied by a visit to the winery, and yet another in 2024. But what kind of wines does Ronco del Gelso produce?

The DOC Friuli Isonzo

Don’t be misled by the winery’s location in Cormons: Ronco del Gelso doesn’t have vineyards in Collio but in the nearby DOC Friuli Isonzo. The neighboring region might have more prestige and the famous Ponca (a mix of marl and sandstone); here, however, we are in the plains, on alluvial soils crossed by the Isonzo river. Interestingly, there is also a left and a right bank here: the former characterized by soils poor in gypsum and rich in clay, mixed with red gravel, while the latter has particularly gypsum-rich soils layered with white gravel. The riverbed is constantly shifting, causing floods that enrich the soil with nutrients.

In this area, too, there is a splendid contrast between the sea breeze coming from the Adriatic and mountain winds, which ensures the thermal excursion necessary to produce grapes with the right acidity. Compared to Collio, there is less tradition, although the owner’s wife mentioned in 2022 some wineries that Ronco del Gelso draws inspiration from. Certainly, Vie di Romans is an excellence whose aura extends well beyond the DOC’s borders. But beyond Vie di Romans and Ronco del Gelso, I struggle to find wines I would recommend. Perhaps future tastings will give me more points of reference.

Ronco del Gelso’s Style

Ronco del Gelso fears nothing, especially not wood. Almost all the wines in the catalog go through barrel aging, and this is clearly reflected in the final product. Beyond creaminess and complexity, barrel aging also requires patience: I noticed from my first purchase that forgetting these bottles in the cellar often improves them, and even the owner’s wife told me that many customers request that the wines be released a year later, given the quality leap they make.

The production is mainly focused on whites, and in fact, the reds I tasted didn’t impress me. But the Friulano Toc Bas, which I left in the cellar for a couple of years, became opulent and tasty; even the Malvasia Vigna della Permuta, the Pinot Grigio Sot Lis Rivis, and the aforementioned Chardonnay Siet Vignis held up very well, balancing rich notes with truly attractive salinity and sapidity. In short, Ronco del Gelso tends to aim for complexity; these aren’t straightforward wines but rather seek to paint a detailed picture in which the drinker can lose themselves in the many rich profiles present.

It’s important to note that the yeasts used in vinification are selected, a detail that may appeal to those a bit tired of the “indigenous” yeast hype.

The Latimis of Ronco del Gelso

The wine that, in my opinion, best represents Ronco del Gelso’s winemaking style is Latimis, even though it’s not the most representative of the winery itself (that role belongs to Toc Bas). This is a blend in which the producer reserves the right to modify the percentage of varieties present from year to year. In this case as well, the wines remain in 25-hectoliter oak barrels for 12 months in contact with fine lees before being assembled.

In Latimis, the producer’s style is the only constant, and the description provided by Ronco del Gelso can be used to define the winery’s style: balanced, rich, intense. It’s therefore the perfect bottle to better understand this producer. I’ve encountered it three times in recent years.

The Revelation

I drank the Latimis 2018 a full four years after the harvest (so in 2022), after having “forgotten it in the cellar.” I paired it with baked sea bream, and the wine was golden yellow, with complex aromas of lemon, almonds, flowers, and aromatic herbs. On the palate, the wine showed remarkable verticality despite its rich body, with an initial fruity and rich impact that evolved into an almost almond-like finish typical of Friulano. In short, it had all the deliberate opulence that Ronco del Gelso seeks. Its intensity was balanced by solid acidity, and it really impressed me—in fact, it convinced me to buy from this producer again.

The Disappointment

The Latimis 2020, on the other hand, was consumed only two years after the harvest (again in 2022), thus avoiding “cellar amnesia,” and it showed. Paired with pasta with pesto, it had a fairly intense golden yellow color and aromas of ripe apricot, rosemary, and citrus. Compared to the vintage two years earlier, it was less rich and lacked the richness that, combined with solid acidity, had so attracted me. However, the wine was still dynamic and interesting, with each sip revealing new nuances, although it was more fruity and less full-bodied. After the great experience of a few months earlier, this bottle left me a bit disappointed.

The Adjustment

I re-tasted the Latimis 2020 in 2024, two years later. I paired it with focaccia with olives and mortadella; it had an intense greenish color with straw-yellow reflections. On the nose, the aromas were rather subdued, with notes of white pepper, citronella, bay leaf, sea breeze, and wet stone, and they weren’t particularly engaging. On the palate, the wine revealed a rich body, perhaps thanks to bottle aging, balanced by high acidity and a slender structure, with Friulano standing out. It was almost like a different bottle compared to the one I drank two years earlier! Unexpected notes of powdered sugar and a light balsamic layer emerged, with Pinot Bianco adding hints of white pepper. The finish was savory and polyphenolic, but unfortunately, an extremely bitter touch of verbena invaded the palate. Overall, the wine aged less well than the 2018 (both remained in the cellar for four years) and lost some of its aromatic potential, but it definitely showed more character than the bottle opened just two years after the wine’s release.

The Value of Ronco del Gelso

Latimis is just one of the many wines from Ronco del Gelso, but it tells us something clear about the producer:

• Ronco del Gelso’s wines benefit from time in the cellar. Drinking them fresh takes something away from them.
• These are wines in which the winemaker’s hand is clearly present; they have a winery identity rather than a territorial one.
• Being a medium-small sized company, a characteristic that I generally consider a plus, they produce wines that vary greatly from vintage to vintage.

The last point, which removes some of the reproducibility from the equation, might annoy some. However, these are wines with an excellent quality-price ratio (ranging from €14 to €20 per bottle), so a less exciting experience doesn’t result in a significant financial loss. The experience, however, shows us that there will be more good or even exciting bottles than forgettable ones.

In short, if Ronco del Gelso were a box of chocolates, it should be kept closed for a while and then opened to pick one at random, not being entirely sure what we’ll taste but knowing that we’ll probably like it.