From Venice we took the train north to Conegliano - about a one hour train, with a few local stops along the way. Once we arrived we picked up a rental car and headed to our home for the next five days, “Maso di villa”, a nice B&B in Collalto, near the town of Susegana. This was a nice place to stay, and worked out well for not having been to this region before however, next time we would likely try to stay closer to the wine…maybe in Valdobbiadene (boy I’m glad I don’t have to pronounce these names!).
The Prosecco DOC region is quite large, while the Prosecco Superiore DOCG region is much smaller consisting of mainly hilly areas, making it very challenging to harvest the grapes. And within the Prosecco Superiore region is an even smaller area called the Cartizze, which is supposedly the very top end for this wine. The map shows the Prosecco Superiore region - we stayed where the Castello Collalto is shown - you can see the small Cartizze area just near Valdobbiadene.
We found that we spent most of our time driving to “Val” (I will shorten the name of the town), and tasting in that area, but it was only about 30 minutes each way, and we would try to take different routes, stopping in each town along the way. After a little (very little) planning the night before, we headed out and our first stop ended up being a roadside tasting off a little road in the village of Follo. The views are amazing - vineyards everywhere! And the wine was good as well. After this stop we headed another 100 yards or so to Bisol, a fairly large producer, with very nice wines.
This small region is the “Cartizze”, which is considered the heart of the Prosecco region and produces (they say) the best of the best. Not being big Prosecco drinkers, we wouldn’t really know, but seeing the hillsides they work here does give you a greater appreciation for the process it takes to make a few bottles of this wine. The hills are steep, and everything is done by hand here. The Cartizze is only 107 hectares (264 acres), and is perfectly situated to provide the perfect microclimate - soil; sun; ventilation; temperatures - to produce the best quality grapes. Oh, and did I say it is absolutely beautiful here??
We spent time at several other wineries in their area (there are plenty to fill your days), and would also wander through some of towns during the days as well. Always a steeple (or several) in every town, and most with interesting history. The Abbazia Santa Maria, was completed in 1268, and is still used today. Made me wonder…”How do you solve a problem like Maria?”
Near our B&B was a restaurant called Due Torri (Two Towers) - they said you could walk there, but then how do you get home? Well, the owners of the place offered to drive us if we needed to. Beautiful views from the terrace of this place and some interesting art work as well.
A few more days of tasting wines. We really enjoyed visiting different wineries, enjoying the views and the wine and of course the food. At Famiglia Scotta, the family has accommodations, they make wine, and they have a roadside BBQ. On the weekends there are many bikers (power and pedal) that stop by for a break. You could see the joy in Antonio’s face as he prepared our meal!
At Locada Sandi, we tasted and bought several wines. They again have accommodations that look beautiful (but a little too close to a busy road for us), and at San Gregorio five daughters run the winery and they have done a fabulous job! Driving home to the B&B, the views are fabulous - below is a roadside photo of the town of Guia - more vineyards and steeples!
This was a beautiful area to explore. As this was our first time, we always say ”let’s come back again”, and while it may never happen, it drew us a bit closer to the Dolomites, and now we are looking at a winter plan… :)
That’s it for now. Time to head off on another train - this time headed to Florence where we will stay just a few days. But time for on me more sip - even on the train!
All the best to everyone.
Stay safe, and enjoy life!
Ciao
Tim & Eileen
