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Collio, history
Collio is an area that has a historical vocation for vine-growing and wine production. In fact, the first vines were cultivated during the pre-Roman era and immediately underwent considerable development. In the third century A.D., Emperor Massimino actually requisitioned all the barrels and casks from the Collio area that were needed to be able to build a wooden bridge across the Isonzo River to reach Aquileia. Vine cultivation was continued and increased throughout the Middle Ages. From the sixteenth century onwards, the Collio wines became known throughout Europe. They were appreciated at the court of Emperor Charles V, by the Tsar of Russia, in Venice, the centre of the Venetian Republic, as well as in Vienna, capital of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire where, in the nineteenth century, large barrels of wine containing Collio wine were delivered. These were initially transported by horse-drawn carts and then by the Transalpine railway line – a track for three populations. The historical nature of Collio vine-growing and wine-making has not been betrayed with the passing of the centuries: today the Collio vineyards cover an area of 1,600 hectares. |
