The 2012 Were Dreams (in a screw cap closure) is a delightful Northern Italian Chardonnay with a great sense of heft and structure to hold it in place. The wine shows a medium rich golden appearance with lively aromas of peach cobbler, baked apple, vanilla bean and exotic fruit. Although the wine boasts good structure, the finish in this vintage is shorter compared to past editions. It ages for 11 months in French oak. According to my submission form, the wine is an assembly of 97% Chardonnay and 3% "top secret." My guess is that the mysterious blending element is an aromatic variety.

The 2011 W?. Dreams? is an almost pure expression of Chardonnay (some tiny percentages of other grapes are added) with sophisticated and exceptionally creamy aromas of exotic fruit, pineapple, toasted almond and freshly-churned butter. The strong oak imprinting is beautifully matched by the natural intensity of the fruit. Soft layers of pulpy peach and apricot give the wine exciting depth and width. Drink: 2014-2019. One of the great pioneers of Friuli wine, Silvio Jermann and his family continue to shake things up in the wider world of vino italiano. Their efforts represent a huge step in the collective consciousness towards screw-cap closures, a move that otherwise seemed light years away. Importer: Empson USA, www.empson.com

The 2009 Were Dreams (Chardonnay) impresses for its balance, especially the integration of fruit and oak, something that has rarely been the case here in the past. Layers of ripe, tropical fruit are nicely suppored by the oak. The round, creamy finish is quite inviting. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2017. This is a somewhat mixed set of wines from Silvio Jermann. The flagships Vintage Tunina, Capo Martino and Were Dreams are less exciting in 2009 than they are in cooler years such as 2008, when less extreme weather balances some of the overtness that is typical of the house’s approach with the top whites. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to taste any Pignolos this year. Readers should be aware that Jermann is owned by my wife’s uncle. I have always viewed education as an important component of wine criticism. An article on Friuli without these wines would have been incomplete and ultimately the consumer would have been poorer for their exclusion. For those reasons I have chosen to include the wines in this report. Neither my wife nor I have any financial or other interest, direct or indirect, in this property. Importer: Empson, USA, Alexandria, VA; tel. (703) 684-0900

The 2008 Were Dreams emerges from the glass with deep, intense layers of fruit. This barrel fermented Chardonnay shows plenty of opulence and richness, but in a nicely balanced style. Tropical fruit, smoke and French oak come together nicely on the finish. As good as this is, the Dreams has never been as convincing as Jermann’s top whites. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2016. These new releases from Silvio Jermann include a number of fabulous bottles. In particular, I was impressed with the top 2008s, a vintage where the cool minerality of the year prevails over the house’s typically lush style, an approach I tend to find less interesting. Jermann has a new red on the horizon, the Pignolo Vigna Truss, from recently purchased hillside vineyards in Dolegna, the home of his massive, new cellar. Previously, Jermann’s Pignolo had mostly come from the flats of Villanova, a far less prestigious village in Isonzo, rather than the Collio. I tasted all of the 2009 entry-level whites from screwcaps. Readers should be aware that Jermann is owned by my wife’s uncle. I have always viewed education as an important component of wine criticism. An article on Friuli without these wines would have been incomplete and ultimately the consumer would have been poorer for their exclusion. For those reasons I have chosen to include the wines in this report. Neither my wife nor I have any financial or other interest, direct or indirect, in this property. Importer: Empson, USA, Alexandria, VA; tel. (703) 684-0900