Ribolla Gialla is one of Italy’s most underrated white wines, and the 2025 Ribolla from Borgo Conventi proves how mistaken that view is. I’ll say it up front, because this is a wine that brings together two qualities that rarely coexist: a strong sense of place and a surprising modernity.
I’ll start with Borgo Conventi, because its story explains a lot. We are in Farra d’Isonzo, in the province of Gorizia, in the heart of Collio. The estate was founded in 1975 by Gianni Vescovo and takes its name from a legend, according to which Rizzardo di Strassoldo, the local feudal lord, donated a plot of land to the Dominican Fathers, who built a convent on it. The Folonari family came next, and since 2019 Borgo Conventi has belonged to the Moretti Polegato family, already owners of Villa Sandi. We are talking about 30 hectares of vineyards across the Collio and Isonzo DOCs, and a production of around 300,000 bottles a year.
This is one of those acquisitions that does Italian wine good. Villa Sandi did not buy a brand to put it on display. It is restoring shine and vitality to one of Collio’s most prestigious names, with respect for its history and a real desire to bring it back to the forefront. The family has also chosen to bring to the Borgo Conventi vineyards the same low-environmental-impact practices that earned the Villa Sandi estates their Biodiversity Friend certification. I have long known the entrepreneurial skill of the Moretti Polegato family, and I am not surprised that they showed such foresight here too.
Now to the Ribolla. It is an ancient grape variety, at home in Collio and in Slovenia’s Brda for centuries. Yet for a long time it was regarded as a minor white, good for everyday drinking and little else. In recent years it has also enjoyed success as a sparkling wine, which has made it better known but has not always conveyed its true worth. Ribolla is an extraordinarily versatile grape. It can produce skin-contact wines of great complexity, as the Oslavia tradition shows, and agile, luminous wines like this one. In both cases it speaks clearly of its territory.
And this is where Ribolla becomes contemporary. It has lively natural acidity, moderate alcohol and a slender body that never feels heavy. That is exactly what many consumers look for today: wines that are a pleasure to drink, that accompany the table without taking over, that have a soul but do not require a lecture to be understood.
The 2025 Ribolla from Borgo Conventi is all of this. One hundred percent Ribolla Gialla, six months in stainless steel, no concession to oak. In the glass it is pale and brilliant, with slight greenish reflections. On the nose, citrus comes first: citron and grapefruit zest, then green apple and a touch of elderflower. On the palate it is taut and zesty, with an acidity that gives rhythm to each sip and a lovely citrus trail on the finish. It has just the right lightness, yet is never thin. It is a wine that makes you want to refill your glass, and today that is a quality far from a given.We paired it with an excellent vegetable risotto. The creaminess of the rice and the sweetness of the vegetables found in the Ribolla their ideal counterpoint. The acidity lightened every bite, while the wine’s citrus and vegetal notes played off the vegetables without overpowering them. A perfect match.
Company Profile
An oasis of tranquillity surrounded by the soft contours of the hills form the backdrop to the Borgo Conventi wine estate. A landowner of noble origins, a friar and a plot of land on which to build the first monastery in the territory of Farra d’Isonzo. Thus began the ancient legend from which Borgo Conventi took its name. Founded in 1975 with the goal of producing refined and elegant wines from this land that is so highly suited to winemaking. Today a passionate team bond together by a love of wine has renewed this challenge while maintaining respect for history and its origin. Borgo Conventi philosophy is in its wines with a marked territorial and varietal identity, seeking for elegance and balance of structure and pleasantness. Each bottle tells a story of high quality, tradition and passion.
BORGO CONVENTI
STRADA DELLA COLOMBARA, 13 – 34072 – FARRA D’ISONZO ( GO )
info@borgoconventi.it – 0481 888 004
https://www.borgoconventi.it
