La Trilogia Nonino per il Terzo Millennio

Press release
Celebrating 25 years since the creation of Grape Distillate, the Noninos are glad to present in Milan, at
Venini shop, the Nonino Collection ÙE® Cru Monovitigno® Picolit “Ziqqurat” or sacred mountain; Via
Montenapoleone will be closed to traffic for the event.
Guests will be delighted by a lightning surprise by MARCO LODOLA, “dancing in the vineyards”, with our
many friends, among whom some great names as Ottavio and Rosita Missoni, Cesare Romiti, Inge Feltrinelli,
Natalia Aspesi, Rosellina Archinto, Lella Costa, Gad Lerner, Renato Mannheimer, Davide Rampello, Cesare
Rimini, Chiara Boni, Gigliola Curiel, Omar Pedrini, Ana Laura Ribas, Antonella Boralievi, Simona Marchini,
Edgar Morin and Matteo Zoppas, and with the participation of the Milan ANA Choir.
The art of distillation has been a privilege of the Nonino family since 1897.
On 1st December, 1973 Giannola e Benito Nonino create single vine grappa, Monovitigno® Picolit revolutionizing
the way of producing and introducing grappa in Italy and all over the World.
On 27th November 1984 the Noninos mark a new turning point by distilling the whole grape, they creat the
Grape Distillate ÙE®. The Ministerial Authorization for the production of the grape distillate (D.M. 20.10.84) is
granted following the specific request by the Noninos.
In homage to their land they have called it ÙE which means grape in the language of Friuli.
On 1st December 1984, to highlight the preciousness of this new distillate, the Noninos ask Venini, the Master
Glassmaker in Murano, to hand-blow a bottle with an image of a bunch of grapes contained within the glass.
Thus began the precious Nonino Collection ÙE® Grape Distillate Cru Monovitigno® Picolit which every year
is stored in specially dated, hand-blown decanters made by Venini, Baccarat and Riedel.
On 22nd June 2000, at Christie’s in London, during the most important Italian wine and distillates auction ever
held to date, some pieces from the Nonino Collection fetch from £1540 (€ 2.531,00) / 1990 vintage, to £1595 (€
2.664,00) / 1989 vintage.
On 14th December 2000 Jewels and Jewels, the Nonino Collection is introduced in Rome in the jewels’ world
temple: Bulgari, Via dei Condotti.
On 4th April 2001, at Finarte in Milan The Murrina / Nonino Collection 1984 is put up for auction and sold for €
2.169,00.
On 28th July 2001, in Yokohama at the exhibition “Italy in Japan 2001”, mounted by Andrea Branzi for the Milan
Triennial, the Nonino Collection ÙE® Cru Monovitigno® Picolit is exhibited in the section “Design as a life style”.
1973-2003, Thirty Years of Monovitigno® Grappa Nonino
On 9th October 2003 at the Milan Triennale, the Nonino Collection is displayed at the heart of the exhibition in
honour of the Thirtieth anniversary of the Nonino Monovitigno®, The Story of a Passion.
On 4th December 2003 The President of the Italian Republic, Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, awards Giannola and Benito
Nonino the prestigious Leonardo Prize for Italian Quality for “the absolute Quality level, Research and
Innovations… The Noninos are considered the true Ambassadors for Italian Grappa throughout the world”.
On 6th December 2003, The New York Times chooses to dedicate its Saturday Profile section to the Nonino family
on the occasion of the Thirtieth Anniversary of the creation of the single-varietal Nonino Monovitigno® Grappa.
June 2009, F. Paul Pacult, described by Forbes Magazine as “the most important and influential American expert
in distillates”, in the prestigious international monthly magazine Spirit Journal identifies as one of the world’s
three best distillates one grappa only: the Nonino Grappa Cru Monovitigno® Picolit.
1984-2009, Twenty-five years of the Grape Distillate ÙE®, created by the Nonino Family in 1984.
Technical card
Ziqqurat | sacred mountain
Primary product Picolit grapes from Nonino vineyards in Buttrio, Friuli.The Picolit is the noblest vine
of Friuli. It is a white spargola grape which tends to suffer from coulure (improper flower setting) and
therefore has low fruit yields.
Vintage 2007
Fermentation in stainless steel tanks under vacuum and in temperature controlled conditions.
Artisanal distillation artisanal batch steam distillation according to our ancient family tradition in
special, exclusive stills renovated by Benito Nonino for the distillation of grape.
Quantity produced 146 anhydrous litres.
Maturation one year in stainless steel tanks.
Quantity bottled 252 litres at 48% vol. equal to 360 numbered bottles of 700 ml:
290 in Arabic numerals, 31 in Roman numerals and 39 proofs of authorship.
Dated decanter ÙE® Grape Distillate Cru Monovitigno® Picolit 2008 is stored in a vintage-dated
decanter designed by Luca Cendali and hand blown by VENINI in Murano with the technique called a
fasce (which means that coloured threads of molten glass called fasce -bands- are poured onto the
decanter in crystal glass with the inclusion of silver leaf and subsequently amalgamated with it)
representing the “Ziqqurat” or sacred mountain, an alchemical journey which spirals upwards
towards the space which is suspended between heaven and earth.
Available in 3 colours:
“Crystal” with the inclusion of silver leaf / Sapphire
“Crystal” with the inclusion of silver leaf / Milkwhite
“Crystal” with the inclusion of silver leaf / Red
Bottling Hand-blown glass stopper by Venini in Murano, with a gold or silver leaf - label with a silver
chain.
Packaging Single bottle walnut cases.
Tasting It has to be served in a tulip shaped crystal glass. Before tasting, ÙE® Cru Monovitigno® Picolit
should be allowed to rest in the glass for some minutes: on exposure oxygen, the perfumes are enhanced
and the nose/palate harmony is perfected.
Visual sensation Crystal clear, with an intense and enchanting allure.
Olfactory sensation Mouth-filling and exceptionally elegant, on the nose it is reminiscent of a
honeycomb full of wild flower honey, the scent of acacia blossom and recently picked figs.
Taste sensation Aristocratic and without equal, the palate clearly confirms the olfactory impression.
Persistent.
Notes about the Nonino Collection
The Nonino Collection counts today 26 creations for a nominal value that exceeds 30.000,00 Euro. Some
pieces, as of today impossible to track down, have been sold at auction at Christie's of London in 2000, at
2.531,00 Euro / Vintage 1990, 2.664,00 Euro / Vintage 1989 and in 2001 at the Finarte in Milan, at
2.169,00 Euro / Vintage 1984. € 2.169,00.
The Nonino Collection ÙE® Cru Monovitigno® Picolit can be found in the most famous Restaurants and
Wine Shops in Italy and in the world.
We mention some of the most prestigious names:
NEW YORK:
LOS ANGELES:
PARIGI:
BERLINO:
SYLT:
LONDRA:
MONTECARLO:
MILANO:
ROMA:
FIRENZE:
San Domenico Restaurant
“Valentino” Restaurant by Piero Selvaggio
“Alain Ducasse” Restaurant
KaDeWe
“Sansibar” of Mr. Herbert Seckler
Harrod’s
Hotel de Paris / Alain Ducasse
Peck, Ezio Santini Antica Osteria del Ponte
Hotel Hassler, Hotel Heden, Osteria dell’Orso
Enoteca Pinchiotti
It is possible to taste the precious ÙE® Cru Monovitigno® Picolit in Rome at the Bar La Terrazza of the Hotel
Eden Via Ludovisi 49, at Salone Eva of the Hotel Hassler Trinità dei Monti , at the restaurant Girarrosto
Fiorentino Via Sicilia and at the Osteria dell’Orso Via dei Soldati 14. Among the collectors, scattered all over
the world, we would like to remind the unforgettable Marcello Mastroianni, the former Japanese Prime Minister
Mr. Nakasone, who discovered the Collection at the Pinchiorri Wine Shop in Florence, Claudio Abbado, the 2001
Nobel Prize for Literature V.S. Naipaul, Claude Levi-Strauss and Peter Brook.
Nonino Collection ÙE® Grape Distillate Cru Monovitigno® Picolit
1984/1984
1985/1986
1986/1987
1987/1988
1988/1989
1989/1990
1990/1991
1991/1992
1992/1993
1993/1994
1994/1995
1995/1996
1986/1997
1997/1998
1990/1999
1998/1999
1990/1999
1999/2000
2000/2001
2001/2002
2002/2003
2003/2004
2004/2005
2005/2006
2006/2007
2007/2008
2008/2009
Venini / La Murrina 656 decanter
Venini / Canne d’Organo 557 decanter
Riedel /Grappolo d’Uva 627 decanter
Baccarat / Incisione 534 decanter
Venini / Incalmo 656 decanter
Baccarat / Versi di Davide M.Turoldo 684 decanter
Venini / Il Fuoco 700 decanter
Baccarat /Alambicco Arabo XII sec. 520 decanter
Baccarat / Uccello Alchemico, L’Aria 384 decanter
Venini / Murrina Tetractys 624 decanter
Riedel /Albero della Vite, La Terra 368 decanter
Venini / L’Acqua 400 decanter
Riedel / La Riserva ‘dei Cent’anni’ 400 decanter
Venini / Spirale Mistica 382 decanter
La Trilogia Nonino per il Terzo Millennio
Baccarat / L’Anima 270 decanter
Riedel / Lo Spirito 284 decanter
Venini / Il Corpo 270 decanter
Venini / Anima Mundi 410 decanter
Venini / Opera Alchemica 356 decanter
Venini / Le Guna 386 decanter
Venini/ Yin Yang 398 decanter
Venini/ Scala della Creazione 394 decanter
Venini / Hýlē 416 decanter
Venini/ The King of the World 387 decanter
Venini/ The Rebis 377 decanter
Venini/ The Athanor 385 decanter
Venini/ Ziqqurat 360 decanter
Nonino Collection ÙE® Cru Monovitigno® Picolit
1984-1990 design by Franco Vattolo / 1991-2009 design by Luca Cendali