Udinese represents my region: if you come from Friuli, you have to be a Udinese fan.

CNN: Lone soccer fan wins army of admirers

In 2003, he was elected president of the Regione Autonoma Friuli-Venezia Giulia a position he held through 2008.

FORBES: Best of Italy: Where Illy Meets Ducati

He rode his BMW 1200 GS to his office after he was elected Governor of Friuli Venezia Giulia in 2003.

FORBES: Best of Italy: Where Illy Meets Ducati

Prosecco, produced in Italy's Veneto and Friuli Venezia Giulia wine regions, enjoys legal brand protection under EU rules that govern other wines like Champagne and Port.

NPR: To Join EU, Croatia May Give Up Its Wine

Even in places where it's a good fit, like Alsace, Friuli, Trentino-Alto Adige and Oregon's Willamette Valley, the wine involves plenty of risk and offers uncertain reward.

FORBES: Pinot Gris makes the Pinot family proud.

The Nonino Quintessentia comes from an amazing family of distillers from Friuli, who make their Amaro in small batches before aging in French Oak and Sherry barrels.

FORBES: Sirio's One Of A Kind Beverage Experience - The Amaro Cart

Udinese halted a worrying run of defeats but could not claim all three points as Lazio held on for a point with a 1-1 draw at the Stadio Friuli.

CNN: Milan victory turns up heat on Ferrara

Granted, the rulers of the Friuli region in the Alps, deciding that enough is enough, axed a small department of the local government whose manifest uselessness had become an embarrassment.

ECONOMIST: Laughter through Italian tears

As for Italian wines, I'll be obliged to drink fewer from the north, since I paid more attention to regions like Piedmont and Friuli and Alto Adige than I did to, say, Campania, Abruzzi and Puglia in the south.

WSJ: My Wine Goals for the Year, More and Less | On Wine by Lettie Teague