Friuli Venezia Giulia

Friuli-Venezia Giulia – Lago del Predil ( Predil Lake)

Friuli Venezia Giulia is a unique case among the Italian regions. Rich of history, and placed at the border of the three major ethnic-linguistic realities of the European continent: Latin, Slavic and Germanic, this region is the result of diversified communities that first collided, then gradually harmonized, resulting finally in different facets . Also, remarkable is the development of small and medium-sized enterprises which are mostly family smallholdings, but the big industries are not lacking. Regarding the cuisine, we should distinguish between three macro-areas: friulana (from Friuli area) , goriziana (from Gorizia area) and triestina (from Trieste area) . The fusion of these cultures gives rise to exceptional dishes, with ever greater place dedicated to local products: corn flour of some local varieties of the Friuli plain, vegetables like the asparagus of Sant'Andrea, radicchio of Gorizia, Herbs, cheese and a wonderful variety of wines, a very high quality production divided into nine zones DOC, with Merlot, Pinot Grigio, Friulano and Cabernet. Among the cornerstones of the entire traditional cuisine there is of course the “Prosciutto di San Daniele” (San Daniele Ham) , produced by 31 companies in the municipality of San Daniele in Friuli, but also “Frico e Polenta” (Frico is dish made of cheese, but also potatoes and butter) . Moving in Gorizia we are able to find and appreciate the Cotechino (Italian IGP charcuterie product, similar to salami, but requiring cooking)and sauerkraut, “gnocchi” ( thick, soft dough semolina dumplings ) and rice are typical of Trieste, with a special mention for the “gnocchi de pan”.