Picolit is a white wine grape native to the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Italy. It has a noble past and is capable of world-class sweet wines. Picolit is one of Italy’s most ancient native grapes, notable for its intravarietal variability. It is unrelated to Piculit Neri.
Wines: Friuli-Venezia Giulia: Colli Orientali del Friuli Picolit DOCG. | Collio DOC. | Friuli Colli Orientali DOC.
Site selection: Picolit does well on the marly-sandy soil (called ponca locally) typical of Colli Orientali del Friuli. It is mainly grown around the area of Udine and Gorizia with the best sites historically identified as Rosazzo, Rocca Bernarda, Cialla and Savorgnano del Torre.
Viticulture: A delicate grape sensitive to downy mildew and to a lesser extent powdery mildew, Picolit gives notoriously low yields with its extremely loosely-packed bunches bearing only a few berries.
Wine styles: Picolit is usually made into a bright yellow to amber-gold color sweet wine, noted for their refined texture. Typical flavours include acacia honey, dried mango, pineapple, candied ginger and nectarine. It does not seem to develop more complex notes with time so is not considered particularly ageworthy. Picolit is also used in blends to give texture and sweetness.
Bibliography
Italian Wine Unplugged (Positive Press, 2017), p.125-6.