Friuli Venezia Giulia
"Where Alpine glaciers come so close to the Adriatic"
Here, they complain in their softly spoken way that no-one knows they are there; that everyone seems to think Italy stops at Venice! Even the largest city, Trieste, historic naval port of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, attracts remarkably little attention to itself. For such an enduringly low profile region though, culinary diversity is impressive, located as it is at the confluence of three great cultures; Venetian, Austro-Hungarian and Yugoslav. Definitely worth finding out more about.
All the more so because here, along with neighbouring Trentino-Alto Adige, is where some of the most compelling white wines in all of Italy are made; fresh, fruity, with delicate fragrance and clearly expressed varietal character.