Summary
Lamberti is one of the best-known wineries on Lake Garda and, like few other names, stands for modern Bardolino. Founded in 1964 in Cavaion Veronese, initially solely as a producer of Bardolino Classico, the company has grown into a full-range house for the classic wines of the Veneto: Bardolino and Chiaretto, Lugana, Valpolicella Ripasso and Amarone, plus Soave, Custoza, Pinot Grigio and Prosecco. Today Lamberti belongs to Gruppo Italiano Vini (GIV), one of Italy's largest wine groups, and farms around 23 hectares of estate vines around the historic Tenuta Preella.
History
The house's name recalls the Lamberti, one of Verona's oldest noble families, who fought for power in the city in the Middle Ages and to whom the famous Torre dei Lamberti on the Piazza delle Erbe is dedicated. The winery itself is considerably younger: it was founded in 1964 in Cavaion Veronese, in the hill country between Lake Garda and Verona.
It all began with a single wine: Bardolino Classico. Lamberti is regarded as one of the companies that recognised early on that the market was changing – and that the classic wines of Verona could win new friends internationally with a more contemporary, fresher style. Step by step, the Bardolino specialist became a house covering the full breadth of the region: Valpolicella, Soave, Pinot Grigio and Merlot were added, later Lugana, Custoza, Amarone and Prosecco.
Since the 1980s Lamberti has been part of Gruppo Italiano Vini (GIV), the association of several long-established Italian wineries whose headquarters are likewise in Pastrengo on Lake Garda. Within the group, Lamberti remains the brand for the classic wines of Verona and the Veneto. In 1994 a modern winery with a capacity of around 4,000 hectolitres was built on the estate – on the foundations of the old stables.
Location & Terroir
The estate's home is the Tenuta Preella in Cavaion Veronese, a few kilometres from the eastern shore of Lake Garda, between the towns of Lazise and Bardolino. The property is surrounded by around 23 hectares of vines lying right in the core zone of Bardolino Classico. The farmhouse dates from the mid-16th century and was once called Contrà Predelle; today it houses the ‘Casa della Lamberti’ with an osteria and wine shop. Bottling and administration are in nearby Pastrengo.
The terroir is shaped by the legacy of the Ice Age: the moraine hills around Lake Garda are strewn with boulders known in dialect as seregni – stones left behind by the melting glacier thousands of years ago. Earlier generations used them for dry-stone walls and boundary markers; the name Preella (‘small stone’) refers precisely to this. The free-draining, gravelly, stony soils and the lake-tempered climate with warm days and cool nights produce fragrant, fresh reds and rosés from Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara.
Beyond its own vineyards, Lamberti works with an established network of contract growers throughout the Veneto – among others for Lugana from the southern shore of Lake Garda, Soave and Valpolicella, and for Glera grapes from the Prosecco zone, where long-standing partnerships exist with local producers.
Style & Philosophy
Lamberti sees itself as a house that gives the classic wines of Verona a modern interpretation: varietally true, clean, fruit-driven and approachable, without blurring the regional origin. For Bardolino that means light, juicy reds with cherry fruit and little tannin; for Chiaretto a pale, easy-drinking rosé; for Lugana a fresh, mineral white from the Turbiana grape.
In Valpolicella the house relies on the region's traditional techniques: for Amarone the grapes are dried for months after the harvest (appassimento), while Ripasso is made by a second fermentation of the Valpolicella on the Amarone pomace. As part of GIV, Lamberti also commits to a course that emphasises territorial values as well as social and environmental sustainability. The aim is less the niche wine than the reliable, well-made bottle that carries the Veneto's wine style out into the world.
Famous Vineyards & Wines
Lamberti does not work with individually designated crus, but structures its range by lines and appellations. Among the best known are:
- Santepietre – the classic line, including Bardolino Classico DOC, Chiaretto di Bardolino DOC and Lugana DOC
- Eleganza Veneta – a more recent collection bringing together the Veneto appellations in contemporary packaging
- Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG and Valpolicella Ripasso DOC from Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella and Molinara
- Lugana DOC from Trebbiano di Lugana on the southern shore of Lake Garda
- Soave DOC, Custoza DOC and Pinot Grigio delle Venezie DOC as fresh whites
- Prosecco DOC – still, frizzante and spumante – from Glera grapes grown by partner estates in the Prosecco zone
The centrepiece remains Bardolino Classico, the wine with which it all began and which has made the Lamberti name synonymous in many countries with the light red from Lake Garda.
Awards
Lamberti is regarded as one of the leading wineries of the Verona area and its wines are present worldwide – from Bardolino Classico via Lugana to Amarone. The wines, above all the Santepietre line, appear regularly in Italian wine guides and rating portals and are among the most widely distributed ambassadors of Lake Garda in export markets. Unlike small top estates, the focus at Lamberti is less on individual medals than on the role the house has played in the international recognition of Bardolino and Chiaretto: it is one of the producers that gave the wines of Lake Garda a contemporary style and thereby paved the way for the region's current renaissance.
