ARCOLE DOC: 2000 YEARS OF WINE

Over 2,500 hectares (6,000 acres) of vineyards, 1,500 vine growers and the involvement of 21 different municipal administrations make the Arcole DOC one of the most significant emergent zones within the sphere of quality wine production in the Veneto.
We are not dealing, therefore, with a minor new DOC area, but rather with a well-established zone of some consequence, whose wines have been on the market for some years now and which is indeed aiming to grow in importance.
In fact, the Arcole DOC came into being in September 2000, taking advantage of a very special patrimony of history and viticulture in order to confer even higher quality to an area of great traditions, lying on the border between the Provinces of Verona and Vicenza.
In the Province of Verona, the production zone includes the whole of the communes of Arcole, Cologna Veneta, Albaredo d’Adige, Zimella, Veronella, Zevio and Belfiore d’Adige, as well as part of Caldiero, San Bonifacio, Soave, Colognola ai Colli, Monteforte d’Alpone, Lavagno, Pressana, Roveredo di Guà and San Martino Buon Albergo.
In the Province of Vicenza, it comprises the entire municipal districts of Lonigo, Sarego, Alonte, Orgiano and Sossano.
Arcole’s role as a zone with a long history and an important tradition of producing wine is a well-established state of affairs, as amply documented in the invaluable book entitled “Arcole DOC, duemila anni di vino” (“Arcole DOC: two thousand years of wine”) by Ernesto Santi, Guerrino Maccagnan and others, which was published recently by the Producers’ Consortium.
The producers who have decided to invest in this zone are concentrating on renewing their vineyards, revising training systems and plant densities with a view to cultivating absolutely top quality grapes.
They offer red wines of great character, such as Merlot and the Cabernets (also in Riserva versions), as well as highly complex varietal whites (Pinot Bianco, Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay and Garganega).