The founder of the respected winery passed away; his family has also announced a new partnership with the Tommasi family of Valpolicella

Marco Felluga, who made exquisite white wines that helped put the Collio area of Italy’s Friuli-Venezia-Giulia region on the global wine map, died April 3. He was 96.

“Friuli and the Collio region have suffered a great loss,” said fellow winemaker Silvio Jermann of Jermann winery. Jermann says that Felluga, along with fellow vintners Count Douglas Attems and Mario Schiopetto, led the drive to elevate wine quality in the Collio region, to advocate for the appellation’s promotion to DOC status and to create a regional consortium of wine producers. “Together they created the modern Collio, [and] they brought international recognition to the Friuli region. He was a great wine producer and a great man, and his loss will be felt keenly.”

Marco’s passing came shortly before his family formalized a new partnership with the Tommasi family of Valpolicella. The Tommasis have purchased a majority stake in the Felluga family’s winery and two estates—Marco Felluga and Russiz Superiore. Marco’s granddaughter Ilaria will remain at the helm of the wineries, however.

The Felluga family has been involved in the Italian wine industry since the 1800s. Following World War II, they settled in the Collio region of Friuli, where Marco and his brother Livio set up new wineries. In 1956, Marco established his namesake estate in Gradisca d’Isonzo, a town approximately 80 miles northeast of Venice and located near the Italian-Slovenian border. Both Marco and Livio believed their region held significant potential for high-quality wine, especially its white variants. In 1968, along with other forward-thinking producers, they helped to introduce the Collio DOC.

Marco was considered a trendsetter for his early decision to reduce yields, retrain vines and incorporate other methods not commonly practiced in the region. However, his vision of creating white wines that could age remains the most resonating to this day. Marco bucked the trend of producing light, easily-consumable Pinot Grigios — something Northern Italy is famous for — and instead crafted the Pinot Grigio Collio Mongris Riserva cuvée, which is aged on lees for two years before bottling.

In 1967, Felluga expanded his investment in the Collio region by purchasing the Russiz Superiore estate in Capriva del Friuli, which came with 125 acres of vineyards. Instead of increasing production for Marco Felluga’s lineup of wines, he set up Russiz Superiore as a distinct brand. Nonetheless, he applied the same philosophy of aging prior to release for the creation of long-lasting wines. The Collio Russiz Superiore Col Disôre is aged for a year in French oak barrels and another year in the bottle, while the Pinot Bianco Collio Russiz Superiore Riserva ages for three years in oak and a year in the bottle.

Brian Larky, founder and CEO of Dalla Terra Winery Direct, Felluga’s U.S. importer since the 1990s, remarked, “[For Marco,] America was always a key objective. Establishing Friuli, Collio, and Marco Felluga were priorities. Marco was always inseparable from his beloved region.”

Ilaria, the granddaughter of Marco and daughter of Roberto, who previously managed the wine estate together, unfortunately passed away due to cancer in 2021. Since then, Ilaria has stepped in to oversee the wineries with financial support from the Tomassi family. Ilaria reassures, “I will carry on leading the companies, alongside our team. The Tommasi Family will aid me in funding for expansion and progression. Our underlying principles will continue to be those that my grandfather Marco and my father Roberto chose to ground their efforts and perspective towards the wine industry.”

Massimo Zorzettig, a co-owner of the adjacent Friuli Colli Orientali appellation’s winery Tunella, admires Marco for his “foresight in his devotion and obligation towards a first-rate regional viticulture. He made significant contributions towards enhancing the territory and the quality wine of Friuli-Venezia-Giulia. [He was] one of the forefathers of Friulian wine.”

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