Summary
Guerrieri Rizzardi is one of the most tradition-rich family wine estates in the Veneto. Its headquarters are in Bardolino on the eastern shore of Lake Garda, yet the estate brings together three classic growing areas of the province of Verona: Bardolino, the Valpolicella Classico around Negrar, and Soave. From around 100 hectares of its own vines it produces only estate-grown, estate-bottled wines – from light Chiaretto and Bardolino Classico to long-lived Amarone crus such as Calcarole. The roots of the Counts Rizzardi in Negrar go back to 1649, and with Villa Rizzardi and its famous Garden of Pojega the house unites wine culture with Venetian architecture.
History
The history of the estate is the history of two old families from the Verona area. In 1649 the Rizzardi acquired the small hamlet of Pojega in Negrar, complete with cellar and vineyards; the first bottling of their own is documented for 1678. In Bardolino the estate's roots go even deeper: the Rambaldi family had planted vines there back in the Middle Ages, and in the late 18th century the marriage of Agostino Guerrieri to the last Rambaldi heiress brought the vineyards on Lake Garda into the hands of the Guerrieri.
The decisive step came in 1913: Count Carlo Rizzardi married Giuseppina Guerrieri – still revered in the family as the 'Grande Dame' – and the two estates in Valpolicella and Bardolino were merged under the name Guerrieri Rizzardi. The first joint vintage appeared in 1914. In the 1970s the Costeggiola estate in Soave was added. Since the late 1990s the sibling generation around Giuseppe, Agostino and Olimpia Rizzardi has led the company, which remains entirely family-owned and, as a member of Les Hénokiens – the association of family businesses with more than 200 years of history – ranks among the oldest wine houses in Italy.
Location & Terroir
Guerrieri Rizzardi farms three very different terroirs. In Bardolino and the neighbouring village of Cavaion, around 45 hectares are spread over some 35 parcels at 70 to 190 metres above sea level. The soils are partly sandy, partly pebbly and in places richer in limestone; the climate is temperate and moderated by nearby Lake Garda. Alongside Corvina and Rondinella, Merlot and Sangiovese also grow here, as do white varieties such as Garganega and Moscato Bianco.
The Pojega estate in Negrar covers around 25 hectares in the heart of the Valpolicella Classico. The vines grow at an average of about 200 metres on clay and limestone soils; many are around 40 years old. The Calcarole cru above the villa is considered an unusually warm, south-west-facing site, the source of the top Amarone. Finally, in Soave, at the foot of the medieval castle, just over 15 hectares are divided into some 33 small parcels, including the Costeggiola and Tenda crus with the Ferra vineyard.
Style & Philosophy
The house's guiding principle: every wine should express the estate it comes from. This is why Guerrieri Rizzardi processes only its own grapes and bottles only on its own estates. Tradition and origin are at the centre, without forgoing modern cellar technology – according to the estate, the new winery is run entirely on solar power.
Stylistically the estate favours elegance over sheer power. The Amarone Calcarole is often described as a fresh, refined example of its kind: the grapes are dried naturally for several months and the wines then mature for around three years in small and medium-sized wooden barrels. The Bardolino and Chiaretto wines are deliberately light, fruity and easy to drink, while the Soave Classico Costeggiola shows the mineral side of Garganega. Not buying in grapes is also part of the philosophy: better less wine, but only from the vineyards the family has known for generations.
Notable Sites & Wines
The range follows the three estates and is shaped by single-vineyard wines:
- Calcarole – Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOCG from the cru of the same name above Negrar; the house's flagship
- Villa Rizzardi – Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva
- 3Cru – Amarone from Corvinone, Corvina, Rondinella, Barbera and Sangiovese, aged for around 36 months in wood
- Pojega – Valpolicella Classico Superiore Ripasso from the estate in Negrar
- Tacchetto – Bardolino Classico DOC, a single-vineyard Bardolino from Corvina, Rondinella and Merlot
- Keya – Bardolino Chiaretto Classico, one of the most awarded rosés in the Veneto
- Munus – Rosso Veronese IGT from the Bardolino estate
- Costeggiola – Soave Classico DOC from the vineyard of the same name
Awards
Guerrieri Rizzardi regularly collects top marks in Italian and international guides. The Amarone Calcarole 2016 received 96 points from Vinous, the top rating of five Grappoli from Bibenda and Due Bicchieri Rossi from Gambero Rosso; the Villa Rizzardi Amarone Riserva 2016 scored 95 points at Vinous. The 3Cru Amarone won a gold medal with 95 points at the 2020 International Wine Challenge, and the Chiaretto Keya was named best rosé of the Veneto by the Vitae guide 2023. The estate also holds a 'Best of Wine Tourism' award, and Maria Cristina Rizzardi Loredan was appointed Cavaliere del Lavoro by the President of Italy.
