Wine in Duino-Aurisina, Friuli-Venezia Giulia

Edi Kante ★ 4.8

Edi Kante built his cellar dug 18 metres deep into the Carso limestone at Prepotto-Aurisina starting in 1980, and now anchors the Carso DOC as one of its two reference cellars (alongside Vodopivec).

Tasting: Cellar visit at Prepotto by appointment with a tour of the 18-metre-deep cellar dug into the Carso limestone, a vineyard walk through the Aurisina parcels and a flight of the Vitovska, Malvasia, Chardonnay and Sauvignon. Reservation required.

Signature wines: kante-vitovska, kante-malvasia, kante-chardonnay, kante-sauvignon

Tip: The 18-metre cellar tour is the most striking architectural moment in any Carso cellar; ask to see all three excavated levels.

Castelvecchio ★ 4.5

Castelvecchio sits at Sagrado at the northern edge of the Carso, where the karst plateau meets the Isonzo plain. The Terraneo family has run the cellar since 1985, with Maddalena Terraneo leading the operation.

Tasting: Estate visit at Sagrado by appointment with a tour of the medieval castle ruins, a vineyard walk through the Carso parcels and a flight of the Vitovska, Malvasia and Terrano. The castle setting makes the visit a hybrid wine and heritage half-day.

Signature wines: castelvecchio-vitovska, castelvecchio-malvasia, castelvecchio-terrano, castelvecchio-refosco

Tip: The Carso castle setting at Sagrado makes Castelvecchio the most photogenic Carso visit; pair it with the Isonzo battlefield museum a short drive away.

Lupinc ★ 4.4

Matej Lupinc runs the small family cellar at Prosecco, the Carso village above Trieste whose name famously predates the Glera-grape sparkling Prosecco of the Veneto.

Tasting: Cellar visit at Prosecco by appointment with a vineyard walk through the Carso parcels above Trieste and a flight of the Vitovska, Malvasia and Glera bottlings. The cellar's osmiza runs at the Carso seasonal calendar.

Signature wines: lupinc-vitovska, lupinc-malvasia, lupinc-glera-sui-lieviti

Tip: The Glera sui lieviti bottling is one of the few Glera wines from the Carso village of Prosecco itself; the cellar serves it during the osmiza weekends.

Edi Kante Tasting Room ★ 4.8

Edi Kante's three-storey 18-metre-deep limestone cellar at Prepotto of Duino-Aurisina pours Vitovska, Malvasia Istriana, Sauvignon and the Terrano red from the Carso karst.

Tasting: Visit Edi Kante's 18-metre-deep limestone cellar at Prepotto of Duino-Aurisina, dug straight into the karst, with a flight of Vitovska, Malvasia Istriana, Sauvignon and the Terrano red from the iron-rich terra rossa soils.

Buffet da Pepi ★ 4.6

Trieste Habsburg buffet from 1897 pouring Vitovska, Malvasia Istriana and Friulano by the glass against boiled pork porcina and kren, the city's reference wine and meat counter.

The list: Trieste's reference Habsburg-era buffet pouring Friulano, Vitovska, Malvasia Istriana and Terrano by the glass paired with boiled pork (porcina), kren and senape since 1897

Pours: Carso Vitovska, Carso Malvasia Istriana, Friulano

Antico Caffe San Marco ★ 4.6

Trieste's 1914 literary caffe with the Joycean backroom, pouring Carso Vitovska and Malvasia Istriana alongside the Viennese-style coffee list and the daily book club.

The list: Historic 1914 Trieste Viennese-style caffe with a literary backroom and a wine list weighted to Carso (Vitovska, Malvasia Istriana, Terrano) and Collio whites for aperitivo and dinner service

Pours: Carso Vitovska, Collio Pinot Grigio, Carso Malvasia Istriana

Caffe Tommaseo ★ 4.5

Trieste's 1830 Habsburg-era caffe on Piazza Tommaseo with marble bar service, pouring Carso, Collio and Friuli Isonzo whites for the aperitivo crowd.

The list: Trieste's oldest 1830 Habsburg caffe on Piazza Tommaseo, with an aperitivo wine list spanning Carso, Collio and Friuli Isonzo whites pour by the glass at the marble bar

Pours: Friuli Isonzo Sauvignon, Carso Vitovska, Collio Friulano

Caffe degli Specchi ★ 4.5

Caffe degli Specchi on Trieste's Piazza Unita d'Italia since 1839, pouring Carso Vitovska and Collio Ribolla on the seafront terrace with Adriatic seafood plates.

The list: Caffe degli Specchi on Piazza Unita d'Italia (founded 1839) with a Carso and Collio-weighted glass list and an Adriatic seafood pairing programme on the terrace

Pours: Carso Vitovska, Collio Ribolla Gialla, Collio Sauvignon

Ristorante Ai Fiori ★ 4.7

Trieste seafood fine-dining institution on Piazza Hortis since 1957, with Adriatic-leaning Friulian-Habsburg cooking and an extended Carso, Collio and Champagne cellar.

Awards: Michelin Guide selection (Italia 2026) 2026, Gambero Rosso Due Forchette 2024

Harry's Piccolo ★ 4.8

Matteo Metullio's two-Michelin-star Harry's Piccolo at the Grand Hotel Duchi d'Aosta on Piazza Unita d'Italia, with contemporary Adriatic and Habsburg cooking and a Friuli-Champagne cellar.

Awards: Michelin Guide two stars (Italia 2026) 2026, Gambero Rosso Tre Forchette 2024

Antica Trattoria Suban ★ 4.6

Suban family Habsburg-Karst trattoria since 1865 on the San Giovanni hillside of Trieste, with goulasch, jota and pljukanci paired against a Carso, Collio and Slovenian Brda cellar.

Awards: Gambero Rosso Bib Gourmand 2024

Ristorante L'Altro ★ 4.5

Trieste contemporary table with chef Marko Pavcnik's Adriatic seafood and Carso foraging menus paired against a Carso, Collio and Slovenian Brda cellar.

Awards: Gambero Rosso recommended restaurant 2024

Edi Kante Estate Shop ★ 4.6

Edi Kante estate shop at Prepotto of Duino-Aurisina inside the 18-metre-deep limestone cellar, selling the full Kante Carso range (Vitovska, Malvasia, Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Terrano).

AIS Friuli-Venezia Giulia (Associazione Italiana Sommelier) ★ 4.6

AIS Friuli-Venezia Giulia regional delegation running the three-level AIS sommelier curriculum across Udine, Trieste, Pordenone and Gorizia with monthly regional masterclasses.

Savoia Excelsior Palace Trieste ★ 4.5

Starhotels Collezione palace hotel on Riva del Mandracchio facing the Adriatic, with 142 rooms in the early 1900s Habsburg-era palace, two restaurants and a bay-facing aperitivo terrace pouring Carso and Collio whites.

The list: Le Rive restaurant and Bistrot Savoy pour Carso, Collio and Friuli Isonzo whites alongside Adriatic seafood, plus the bay-facing aperitivo terrace with Carso Vitovska and Malvasia by the glass

Grand Hotel Duchi d'Aosta ★ 4.7

Grand Hotel Duchi d'Aosta on Piazza Unita d'Italia in Trieste, with 55 rooms inside the Belle Epoque palace facing the Adriatic, plus the Harry's Piccolo two-Michelin-star restaurant and Harry's Bar pouring Carso and Collio whites.

The list: Harry's Piccolo two-Michelin-star restaurant with Matteo Metullio's contemporary Adriatic carte and a cellar of around 1,200 labels weighted to Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Champagne, plus Harry's Bar aperitivo programme

Carso Karst Vitovska Cellar Experience ★ 4.7

Private Carso plateau circuit covering Edi Kante's 18-metre-deep limestone cellar at Prepotto, Vodopivec's buried qvevri at Sgonico and Beniamino Zidarich's underground stone-vat cellar, paired with Vitovska, Malvasia and Terrano.

Edi Kante 18-metre-deep cellar evening tour ★ 4.6

Edi Kante's evening cellar tour of the 18-metre-deep limestone-carved cellar at Duino-Aurisina, Carso. Reservation required.

The list: Edi Kante evening cellar tour of the 18-metre-deep limestone-carved cellar at Aurisina-Prepotto, with the Vitovska, Malvasia and Sauvignon flight.

Tip: Kante's 18-metre-deep cellar runs cold through the summer heat; the descent is part of the visit and the temperature drops by 8 to 10 degrees on the way down.

Edi Kante ★ 4.7

Edi Kante runs an 18-metre-deep limestone-carved cellar at Aurisina-Prepotto on the Carso plateau above Trieste, with organic-farmed Vitovska, Malvasia Istriana, Sauvignon and Chardonnay across the karst-and-terra-rossa parcels. The cellar pairs the Carso terra rossa over solid limestone substrate with the low-intervention stainless-and-oak approach.

Tip: Kante's 18-metre-deep cellar runs cold through the summer heat; the descent is part of the visit and the temperature drops noticeably on the way down.