1. Overview.
Lake Garda in northern Italy is the country’s largest lake, a glacial carved beautiful locale popular for visitors, water sports, food and wine.
Below are courses of a lunch that was hosted by the Garda DOC Consortium, which coordinates marketing for this appellation that covers a diverse range of regions.
2. Forbes Articles and Tastings.
Five new articles published today:
- A Summer Sampling Of Wines From Four Italian Regions
- A Sampling Of Wines From The Little Known Marche Region Of Italy
- New Books To Relish—Asian Cooking And A History Of Italy Through Wine
- Garda DOC Wines Carve An Identity Along An Italian Great Lake
- Evaluating Italy’s Lake Garda White Wines For Value
For wine tasting notes in the above articles on Evaluating Lake Garda white wines, this graphic summarizes wines evaluated for value, using my proprietary Vino Value Algorithm.
| Winery/Wine/Year | Subjective Quality Scoring – 100 Point System | Price Euros | Value Evaluation |
| Valdo Garda. Brut Sparkling Wine. Garda DOC. | 90.0 | € 6.00 | Good Value♫ |
| Santa Sofia. Croara del Lago Bianco. Garda DOC. 2022. | 89.8 | € 13.00 | |
| Santa Sofia. Le Calderare. Pinot Grigio. Garda DOC. 2023. | 90.5 | € 10.00 | Good Value♫ |
| Ricchi. Meridiano Chardonnay. Garda DOC. 2023. | 92.0 | € 9.50 | Excellent Value♫♫ |
| Aziendo Agricola Pratello. Donna Caterina. Metodo Classico Brut. Garda DOC. | 94.0 | € 22.00 | Excellent Value♫♫ |
| Novapalma. Maĩa. Extra Dry. Blanc de Blancs. Garda DOC. | 92.5 | € 6.00 | Superlative Value ♫♫♫ |
| Cantine di Verona. Cantina Colli Morenici. Spumante Metodo Classico. Garda DOC. | 93.5 | € 8.00 | Superlative Value ♫♫♫ |
| Sartori di Verona. Pinot Grigio. Garda DOC. 2023. | 90.5 | € 8.50 | Good Value♫ |
| Averoldi Francesco. Octavius. Brut. | 90.0 | € 5.00 | Good Value♫ |
| Cantina Gozzi. Rugiada. Vino Spumante. Garda DOC. | 92.0 | € 8.00 | Excellent Value♫♫ |
| Cantina Delibori. Villabella. Pinot Grigio. 2023. | 90.0 | € 12.00 | |
| Cantina Bottenago. Bottinus. Extra Brut Millesimato. Metodo Classico. Garda DOC. | 93.0 | € 15.00 | Superlative Value ♫♫♫ |
| Baroldi Diego. Extra Brut Metodo Classico. Garda DOC. | 90.5 | € 14.00 | Reasonable PQ ratio |
| Zenato. Azienda Agricola Santa Cristina. Chardonnay. Garda DOC. 2023. | 90.0 | € 10.40 | Reasonable PQ ratio |
3. Lunch.
Along Lake Garda at Villa San Vigilio.
Entrée.
Persico crocante in scapece, peperone rosso ‘Cornetto’ confit e spuma di burrata.
Crispy perch in marinated fish dil, confit ‘cornetto’ with red pepper and burrata foam.
Wine.
Azienda Agricola Perla del Garda. Cuvée Extra Brut. DOC Spumante Metodo Classico. 2018.
Primo Piatto.
Spaghettino tiepido con crema ai limoni del Garda, olio all’erba cipollina, uova di trota e la sua bottarga.
Warm spaghetti with Garda lemon cream, chive oil, trout eggs and dried tuna.
Wine.
Ricchi. Meridiano. Charonnay. Garda DOC. 2023.
Secondi Piatto.
Filetto di vitello farcito con rosa camuna, filange di peperoni cornetto confit al timo patate duchessa e zucchine grigliate.
Veal fillet stuffed with Camuna rose cheese paste, strings of peppers, confit croissant with thyme, duchess potatoes and grilled courgettes.
Wine.
Zenato. Azienda Agricola San Cristina. Cabernet Sauvignon. 2021.
Dessert.
Biancaneve—Mousse al cioccolato bianco con salsa di frutti di bosco freschi ai centro.
Snow White—White chocolate mousse with fresh berry sauce.
Wine.
Brolo dei Giusti. Passito. Garda DOC. 2020. (Sweet wine)
4. Insights.
- 76% of Garda DOC wines come from five cooperatives. Some produce excellent sparkling wines at great value. Think sparkling wines if you visit Lake Garda.
- Lake Garda is huge, at the base of the Alps. Choose one focal point where you will stay, but also wander north and south along the lakeshore.
- It’s a lake—take a boat ride!
- You may want to combine a visit to Lake Garda with a visit to Verona, about 45 minute drive away.
- The focus today by grape growers is Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay. But also try wines made from local grapes such as Garganega. And red wines can also be splendid and at great value.
5. Videos.
Thanks for tuning in! Coming attractions include a garden party in Beaune, Burgundy and notes on wines from La Liviniere and elsewhere in the Minervois.
