Grazie Mille
It’s official: I’m wine press.
Not as in “I’m crushing grapes” but as in “media”. Your Wine Doc recently had the opportunity to join a group of international wine journalists invited for two days to discover the wines of Garda DOC, a region in northern Italy anchored by Lake Garda.
This will be a different kind of post. In fact, it will be one of two, allowing me to cover the places and activity over those two days in a manageable way, accompanied by lots of pictures.
Before we dive in, let’s get you grounded with a little geography. Lake Garda is Italy’s largest lake, situated between Milan to the west and Venice to the east:
Lake Garda is the result of glacial activity millions of years ago, which created this “moraine valley”:
Those are the Dolomites in the background with Switzerland and Austria beyond
To put some numbers around it, the lake is over 30 miles long and as much as 10 miles wide. It is very deep, averaging almost 450 feet. Surprisingly, Garda is actually a Mediterranean climate, with large temperature swings making it very suited to vineyards and grape growing. The secret is the temperature difference between high and low altitudes in this “amphitheater”. Breezes descend from the mountains in the morning, and reverse back north in the afternoon.
But numbers and maps don’t do it justice. Here’s what I’m talking about:
Picture is worth a thousand words…
So now you know where I was. How did I get there and what did I do?
I was very lucky to have been asked by the international food & drinks agency Sopexa to join a group of wine journalists from the US, Italy, the UK, Switzerland and Germany for a two day event hosted by the Garda DOC producer consortium (remember your 101: DOC = controlled appellation of origin). The Garda DOC is actually an “appellation of appellations”, 10 in all, covering over 70,000 acres and producing 20 million bottles of wine annually. The eastern-most appellations, Valpolicella and Soave, are not shown on this map below:
We stayed on the south-eastern shore of the lake in Bardolino, the Hotel Caesius
I was one of 6 American journalists, part of a larger group of approximately 25 fun and interesting writers and media types covering the world of wine. Our program was broken into two days as follows:
Day 1 - Overview of GARDA DOC by consortium leadership, plus climate and biodiversity topics by local experts; lunch by the lake; Guided MasterClass tasting; Walk-around tasting tables with representatives from local producers; sunset cruise on a 79 foot, two masted sailing vessel built in 1926, the “Siora Veronica”.
Day 2- In depth visits to three leading wineries from around the region.
Our setting for Day 1, Dogana Veneta in Lazise, located on the south-east corner of the lake:
Our class & tastings were held in the 14th century customs house on the left; that’s our sailboat straight ahead!
The presentations were in Italian! Us non-Italian speakers sat near the back, with blue-tooth headphones providing translation. Felt like I was at the UN!
Before we head out on the lake, a little Wine Doc class on what grows here (no headphones required). There are 8 main grape varietals grown in the area - 4 White: Garganega (a new one for me); Trebbiano; Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio, and 4 Red: Corvina (a key component of the famous Amarones from nearby Valpolicella, but very enjoyable on its own); Marzemino (a lesser-known blending grape); Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.
We will get into some of these in more detail in Part 2, but I started to appreciate what this unique lake-driven terroir imparts to the wines produced here: a freshness and relative softness that makes them so approachable and versatile.
These were some of the best wines from Day 1. The bottom two producers you will see and learn more about in Part 2. Plus, there is one more not pictured I am saving entirely for Part 2, as they are a wonderful story that deserves more space.
The wine in the upper left, “Faial”, is a Merlot produced by the Piona family. Prendina is one of their labels. Giulia Piona told me her sailor father once made a treacherous Atlantic crossing. The conditions were so bad he thought he wouldn’t survive, until he finally caught sight of Faial Island in the Azores. He never forgot how Faial made him feel, and he named a wine after it. The Pionas take a unique approach with this wine, drying out the Merlot grapes in wooden boxes to help fully express the fruit. One of the best Merlots I’ve had in a long time.
My American journalist buddy Jeff felt the sparkling wine in the upper right was the best wine of the day. He might be right. Perla del Garda’s Millesimato Extra Brut is 100% Chardonnay, made in the traditional (two step fermentation) method. Spends 5 years aging in the bottle before release. Served to us by Giovanna Prandini, Founder and Wine Maker. Bottled only in magnums. A gorgeous wine!
Ok, and now the Lake. You really begin to appreciate the beauty of this region when you are out on the water. That’s me below, appreciating!
Garda DOC poster boy..
Upper left: the American team, hard at work…
That will do it for Part 1. Look for Part 2 soon, where we visit some of the region’s best producers, and experience some exceptional wines and food. Yes, we are in Italy, and that means great food! Can’t wait to show you!
Until next time, Salute!