Order a "Franconia" in a Veneto trattoria and you'll get a robust, peppery red. Order a "Blaufränkisch" in a Vienna heuriger and you'll get almost exactly the same wine. That's not a coincidence — they're the same grape.
One grape, several passports
Blaufränkisch is Central Europe's grape: Austria's most important native red, also grown as Kékfrankos in Hungary and Frankovka further east. It likes cooler sites, holds onto its acidity, and rewards a bit of patience in the glass.
In a handful of vineyards in northeastern Italy, the same grape goes by a different name: Franconia. It's a small, largely overlooked pocket of Italian wine — most Italian wine drinkers have never tasted it, let alone heard of it.
How it ended up in the Veneto
Cross-border winemaking history brought Blaufränkisch into Friuli and the eastern Veneto generations ago, where it took root under its local name. Moletto, our producer in Treviso, has grown Franconia in these vineyards for decades — long enough that it's simply part of the estate's identity now, not a novelty planting.
It never became fashionable the way Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon did in the same region. That's exactly why it's interesting: what's left is grown by people who actually like the grape, not people chasing a trend.
What it tastes like
Franconia pours a deep, almost opaque ruby. Expect dark berry fruit — blackberry, black cherry — with a distinctive peppery, slightly spicy edge that sets it apart from the region's more familiar reds. The tannins are present but not aggressive, and the acidity stays firm, which gives the wine its structure and makes it genuinely food-friendly rather than a sipping wine.
It's a grape with personality. Not shy, not simple, and not trying to taste like something more famous.
What to pair it with
That spice and acidity make Franconia a natural partner for grilled and smoked meats — ceafă or mici straight off the grill, a good pastramă, anything with a char on it. The acidity also means it can hold its own next to tomato-based sauces, which is more than most soft, fruit-forward reds can say.
Serve it slightly cool for a red — around 16°C — to keep that spice lively rather than letting it turn heavy.
The Franconia in our collection
Our Franconia IGT Veneto Orientale from Moletto is exactly this: an honest, characterful red that most people will never have heard of before they meet it in the glass. If you already know Blaufränkisch from Austria and want to see what its Italian cousin does differently, this is the bottle. If you've never tried either, this is as good a place to start as any.
→ Explore more Italian reds from the Veneto
From the same producer:
- Colmello Rosso IGT Veneto Orientale — a Merlot and Franconia blend from the same Moletto vineyards
- Malbech IGT Veneto Orientale — another rare grape variety Moletto has kept alive in the Veneto Orientale