About Guerrieri Rizzardi
Guerrieri Rizzardi joins two of Verona's oldest wine families: the Rizzardi, who bought their first vineyards in 1649 and were bottling wine by 1678, and the Guerrieri of Bardolino, whose house dates to the fifteenth century. The two lines merged in 1913 and released their first joint vintage in 1914. Today the estate farms only its own vineyards across three classic zones, Bardolino on Lake Garda, Soave at Costeggiola and 25 hectares in the Valpolicella Classica at Negrar around Villa Rizzardi and the Pojega garden, home of the Amarone crus Calcarole, Rovereti and Pojega.
Prices are for take away and shipping. The wine bar serves from its own list.
The winery
About Guerrieri Rizzardi
History
Guerrieri Rizzardi is the union of two old Veronese wine families. The Rizzardi came from Toscolano Maderno on Lake Garda, settled in Verona and became prosperous merchants. In 1649 Count Carlo Rizzardi bought a Valpolicella estate in Negrar, and he later added other properties nearby. The Guerrieri counts owned a centuries old estate with vineyards and cellars in Bardolino, where they also grew olives.
The two houses merged in 1913, when Carlo Rizzardi married Giuseppina Guerrieri. Together the properties became the Guerrieri Rizzardi agricultural company, and the first bottles under the joint label date from 1914. The family crest still appears on the labels of the four Classico wines.
The land and the vineyards
The vineyards lie in several classic areas of the province. Around Bardolino, on the hills of Lake Garda's eastern shore, they cover parts of the villages of Bardolino and Cavaion. In Valpolicella the family farms near Negrar, around the historic Pojega cellar and Villa Rizzardi. The family also holds land in Soave.
Native varieties lead the plantings: Corvina, Corvinone and Garganega. Barbera, Sangiovese, Merlot and Chardonnay are grown where the soils suit them. Trade sources describe around 70 separate vineyard plots, some with vines up to 45 years old, which gives the cellar many small lots to choose from when it blends.
The wines
The house makes wines from each of its areas: Bardolino and Bardolino Chiaretto, Valpolicella, Amarone della Valpolicella Classico, and Soave. The aim is to let the soil and the grape variety speak, so each bottle shows the character of its own hillside rather than a house style.
Since 2011 the main winery has stood at Campazzi, in the hills near Bardolino. The historic Pojega cellar in Negrar remains part of the family's story.
Today
The company is entirely family owned and managed by the third generation of the Rizzardi family: Giuseppe, Olimpia and Agostino. Visitors can book guided tours in Italian, English or German, from the vineyard to the bottling line, finishing with a tasting of wines and olive oil with local cold cuts and cheese.
- Founded
- 1913 (merger of the Guerrieri and Rizzardi estates)
- Main grapes
- Corvina, Corvinone, Garganega
- Owners
- Rizzardi family