Fall is my most favorite time of the year, especially hear in New England near the mountains of New Hampshire. The foliage here is outstanding! When our host, Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm, wanted to feature fall Italian wine and food pairings for this month's theme for Italian Food, Wine and Travel (#ItalianFWT) how could I not join despite my lack of free time these days. I decided to feature a Bardolino wine even though I do tend to recommend these wines as one of those Italian red wines that you very easily can enjoy even in the warmer days. Let’s take a look at this wine further and how I chose to pair Bardolino with food.
All about Bardolino
If you’ve been fortunate enough to visit the Lake Garda territory that sits between the regions of the Veneto and Lombardy wine regions, you may have stumbled across where Bardolino wines come. The town of Bardolino is located on the southeastern side of Lake Garda and is situated between Peschiera del Garda and Garda.
Copyright of Consorzio Vini Bardolino
The proximity of this wine territory in Bardolino is rather mild and Mediterranean moderated by Lake Garda and the mountains to the north creating a perfect microclimate for these wines to grow. The vineyards are set in the hills outside the shoreline made up of ancient glacial morainic soils that are gravelly and full of clay and limestone.
The Bardolino DOC was established in 1968 and became a Superiore DOCG later in 2001. You will find a couple of styles of wines grown here. The Bardolino DOC classic style like the one I’m sharing today and a Chiaretto di Bardolino DOC, which is produced with the same grapes used to make Bardolino, but in a rose style with minimal skin contact.
Today we’ll focus on the Bardolino DOC wines in particular which can be comprised of three grapes: Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara. These grapes may sound very familiar to you if you’re used to drinking the wines of the Valpolicella wine region since they are the same grapes used in varying degrees to make the wines that hail from the Valpolicella wine territory.
Although, when these grapes are used to produce Bardolino wines, they tend to be lighter in body, more fresh on the palate with soft tannins, high acidity and red fruits (cherry and red currants). They are very food friendly as well. I even recommend giving these wines a slight chill and that is why for red wine drinkers that still want a red wine in the summer, but something that isn’t too heavy, Bardolino is perfect for you!
This Weeks Wine Selection
This week I’m sharing the 2024 Zeni Bardolino Classic DOC “Mr. Lake”. This wine is made from 60% Rondinella and 40% Corvina. I’m not sure what the “Mr. Lake” represents, but maybe it’s to catch the consumer’s eye representing Lake Garda. It’s an easy open with a screw cap. The wine is aged in stainless steel. A transparent pale ruby color with aromas of bright cherry. This wine is lighter in body, fresh and easy drinking. Smooth with juicy red fruit with a touch of pepper. ABV 12.5%, SRP $14
Food pairing with Bardolino
As much as I wanted to cook an authentic dish typical of the region to pair with this Bardolino, my schedule had something different in mind. We‘re on the football field 4-5 nights a week so the fact that we could even enjoy this dish was a pleasure. No rest for the weary!
I had some chicken sausage that I wanted to grill up while also utilizing some of the zucchini from my garden. I decided to make a simple marinara sauce along with pasta to eventually combine all the ingredients together to pair with the Bardolino. The chicken sausage had a little bit of pepper in it, but complemented the Bardolino just fine. Bardolino is a wine that I wouldn’t pair with too heavy of a dish, but has the versatility to go with many dishes.
What’s your experience with Bardolino and do you have a favorite pairing?
Catch the Italian food and wine writers share their personal picks for this fall.
- Our Good Life: Apple Picking in Italy: An Easy Fall Apple Cake Recipe
- Wineivore: Coda di Volpe Paired with Chicken Under a Brick
- Day in the Life on the Farm: Dreaming of Fall in Piedmont
- Culinary Cam: Embracing Autumn: A Mediterranean Noir, Spaghetti all'Assassina, and Two Bottles of Negroamaro
You can find Bardolino wines to sample for yourelf at Wine.com. I may receive compensation for any wines purchased through the affiliate link in support of Vino Travels.
Don't miss out on our upcoming 2nd newsletter coming out in October featuring the Collio wine territory in northeastern Italy bordering Slovenia. This is exclusive to email subscribers so be sure to not miss out and sign up now!
