Bardolino is the red and rosé denomination of Lake Garda's eastern shore, made in 16 comuni of the province of Verona from Corvina veronese and Rondinella. It was recognised as a controlled denomination of origin by presidential decree on 28 May 1968, and its rules were last changed by ministerial decree on 2 April 2021, which added three sub-zones to the label.
The name covers more styles than most visitors expect. Seven wines can legally be called Bardolino: Bardolino, Bardolino Classico, Bardolino Chiaretto, Bardolino Classico Chiaretto, Bardolino Chiaretto Spumante, Bardolino Novello and Bardolino Classico Novello. The Chiaretto, a pale rosé, is the one the consortium itself calls the wine that represents the denomination.
What goes into the bottle
The blend is fixed by the production rules rather than left to the producer. Corvina veronese, also called Cruina or Corvina, makes up 35 to 95 per cent, and up to 20 per cent of the Corvinone variety may be substituted for an equal share of Corvina. Rondinella makes up 5 to 40 per cent.
Up to 20 per cent of the total may come from other non-aromatic red varieties approved for the province of Verona, with a ceiling of 10 per cent for any single one of them. Molinara is the exception and may reach 15 per cent, which is why older bottles and traditional producers still show it.
Grapes for Bardolino must reach a minimum natural alcoholic strength of 9.5 per cent by volume, and the maximum yield is 12 tonnes of grapes per hectare of specialised vineyard, with an allowance of up to 20 per cent more in exceptionally good years that has to be brought back within the limit. For vineyards planted since the rules were approved, only espalier and inclined-wall pergola training are allowed, at a minimum density of 3,300 vines per hectare.
Chiaretto, and how the rosé is made
Chiaretto is a pale rosé made from the same native varieties, vinified in rosé. The consortium describes it as petal pink or onion skin in colour, with white flowers, rose, peach, pomegranate, citrus and aromatic herbs on the nose, and a fresh, dry palate with a distinctly saline, mineral note it attributes to the morainic soils.
There are two traditional routes to it, and the choice depends on the vintage and on the market. A producer either harvests the grapes destined for Chiaretto separately and earlier than those for the other styles, or uses the salasso method on musts destined for Bardolino, drawing off a quantity of must from the maceration vat of red grapes and continuing the fermentation without skins.
In both cases the production rules note that producers work to preserve the integrity of the colour, to bring out the small wild fruit notes typical of the zone's traditional varieties, strawberry and raspberry in particular, and to keep a considerable freshness. The sparkling version, Bardolino Chiaretto Spumante, developed out of that same technique.
The zone, and what Classico means
The denomination covers 16 comuni on the Veneto side of the Garda morainic amphitheatre, the ring of hills left by the glaciers that cut the lake basin. Its southern edge runs along the outermost morainic ridge and climbs north into the Adige valley just west of Bussolengo, follows the river to Canale di Rivoli Veronese, turns west at Vezzane di Caprino Veronese, keeps to the slopes of Monte Baldo and comes down to the lake at Torri del Benaco.
Six of those comuni form the Classico zone, which was recognised in the original 1968 decree: Bardolino, Garda, Lazise, Affi, Costermano and Cavaion. A bottle labelled Bardolino Classico comes from within that older, smaller area. The other ten comuni make up the wider zone.
One of the six is a curiosity. The consortium records that Garda's territory falls inside the Classico zone but that its wine production is extremely limited, so the town that gave the lake its name contributes very little of the wine. The consortium itself was set up in 1969, which makes it one of the oldest wine consortia in Italy.
The three sub-zones added in 2021
The 2021 decree recognised three sub-zones, each a cru with its own delimited comuni and stricter rules. La Rocca covers the parts of Bardolino, Castelnuovo del Garda, Garda, Lazise, Peschiera del Garda and Torri del Benaco that fall inside the Bardolino zone, occupying the lakeside and its first hinterland on the finer morainic hills. Sommacampagna covers the parts of Bussolengo, Pastrengo, Sommacampagna, Sona and Valeggio sul Mincio inside the zone, the south-eastern arc of the moraines, which the consortium describes as the warmest and driest part of the denomination. Montebaldo covers the parts of Affi, Caprino Veronese, Cavaion Veronese, Costermano sul Garda and Rivoli Veronese inside the zone, the highest and most inland part, at the foot of Monte Baldo, with wider temperature swings and more rainfall.
The rules for a sub-zone wine are tighter than for Bardolino. The maximum yield drops from 12 to 10 tonnes of grapes per hectare, the minimum natural alcoholic strength rises from 9.5 to 11 per cent by volume, and the maximum conversion of grapes into finished wine is capped at 70 per cent, with anything between 70 and 75 per cent losing the right to the denomination and anything above 75 per cent disqualifying the whole lot. Enrichment is not permitted at all.
A sub-zone wine may not be released for sale until 1 September of the year after the harvest, which is the one-year minimum ageing the consortium advertises. Blending is allowed up to a maximum of 15 per cent of the total with wine from another sub-zone.
The Montebaldo name needed an agreement, because the mountain also lies partly in the province of Trento. The Bardolino consortium signed one on 20 June 2019 with the Vini dei Forti consortium in Avio and the Trentino wine consortium, to share the geographical name so that a future Montebaldo sub-zone on the Trentino side is not ruled out.
How the consortium says to serve it
Bardolino is a light red, and the consortium's own serving advice treats it as one. It recommends a serving temperature of 14 to 16 degrees Celsius, and says it can be served cooler still in summer, at around 12 degrees. The glass it suggests is a medium-sized tulip, and it advises letting the wine rest for 10 to 15 minutes after opening.
The tasting description is a vivid, clear ruby red, with delicate aromas of cherry, raspberry and small red fruits and light floral notes, and a palate that is fresh and slim with soft tannins, balanced acidity and a dry, fruity finish. The consortium's framing is that this is a wine for the everyday table rather than for keeping, which is the honest way to approach it.
For the sub-zone wines the framing changes. Those are described as aiming at concentration and complexity, with each area's microclimate giving a more defined character: a Mediterranean climate on the shore in the La Rocca district, where olives and citrus grow, a medium-continental one at Sommacampagna where the lake moderates the temperature less, and a mountain climate on the Monte Baldo side.
Tasting it around the lake
Bardolino is made on the shore that the eastern-shore towns this guide covers sit on, so the cellars are within reach of a holiday base rather than a day's drive away. The consortium publishes its own lists of member cellars and of wine tourism offers, which is the place to start rather than a booking site, because it is the only list that is tied to the denomination.
Two practical points follow from the rules above. First, Classico on the label tells you the wine came from the six original comuni, which is a geographical fact rather than a quality grade. Second, a sub-zone name on the label does mean stricter rules: a lower yield, a higher minimum ripeness, no enrichment and a year before release.
This page describes the denomination and its rules. Prices are not quoted here, because the consortium does not publish them and a cellar door price verified in one week is wrong by the next.
