Lake Garda is ringed by vineyards, and each shore makes something different. The hills behind Bardolino and Lazise on the east shore grow the light red Bardolino and its pale rosé, Chiaretto. The flat clay south of Sirmione and Peschiera is Lugana, a white that ages better than most people expect. The Valtenesi hills above Moniga and Manerba on the west shore make their own Chiaretto and reds from the Groppello grape. Custoza, a crisp white blend, comes from the hills between Peschiera and Verona, and the Trentino north end around Riva and Arco makes mountain whites and sparkling wine. Valpolicella and Amarone are half an hour east of the lake and make an easy day trip.
We have visited every winery on this list, tasted at the counter and bought a case at most of them. We ranked them on the wine first, then on how good a visit it is: whether you can turn up without a fuss, whether someone will talk you through the glasses, and whether the setting makes you want to stay for a second bottle. Tastings run €15–35 a head, and most cellar-door shops are open six days a week without booking.
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1Our top pick
Best all-round winery visit
#1 Zeni 1870, Bardolino
96/100
Bardolino · Via Costabella, a ten-minute walk above Bardolino
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Zeni is the easiest serious winery on the lake to visit: a ten-minute walk uphill from the Bardolino lakefront on Via Costabella, with a free wine museum of old presses and tools, a big tasting counter and a shop selling the whole range from everyday Bardolino and Chiaretto to Amarone and Ripasso from their Valpolicella vineyards. Tastings at the counter cost a few euros a glass; structured tastings and cellar tours need booking. Start at the lakefront in our guide to Bardolino and walk up.
Sirmione · Lugana di Sirmione, south of the peninsula near the A4
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The Dal Cero family’s estate on the flat land south of Sirmione is the reference point for Lugana. The basic I Frati is the wine you see on every good list around the lake, and the oak-aged Brolettino and the late-harvest wines show how far the Turbiana grape can go. The tasting room is modern and welcoming, tastings need booking a day or two ahead, and the shop sells the full range at cellar-door prices. It is ten minutes’ drive from the castle in our guide to Sirmione.
Guerrieri Rizzardi has been making wine in Bardolino since the 1600s and its cellars and walled garden sit right in the middle of town, a few steps from the Thursday market. The Bardolino Classico and the Chiaretto are among the most elegant on the east shore, and the family also owns vineyards in Valpolicella and Soave, so a tasting covers the whole Verona range. Visits and tastings are by appointment, and a walk through the garden and old cellar is part of it. It pairs naturally with Zeni for a full Bardolino day.
Zenato started in Lugana in 1960 and its San Benedetto Lugana is probably the most widely poured white on the lake, but the estate also makes serious Amarone and Ripasso from its Valpolicella vineyards, so a tasting here moves from crisp white to big red in four glasses. The winery is at San Benedetto di Lugana, on the flat land between Peschiera and Sirmione, with a tasting room and shop; book ahead for a guided tasting. Peschiera’s station is ten minutes away; see our guide to Peschiera del Garda.
Moniga del Garda · Moniga del Garda, in the Valtenesi hills above the west shore
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Mattia Vezzola at Costaripa is the winemaker who turned the west shore’s Chiaretto from a beach drink into something worth cellaring. The RosaMara is the bottle to try, pale, dry and made from Groppello, and the estate also makes very good traditional-method sparkling wine from its years of Franciacorta experience. The winery is on the edge of Moniga, in the Valtenesi hills a few minutes from the lake, with a tasting room and shop; tastings are by appointment. Moniga’s castle and beach are in our guide to Moniga del Garda.
Raffa di Puegnago del Garda, inland from Salò and Manerba
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The Pasini family’s estate at Raffa di Puegnago, in the hills between Salò and Manerba, is fully organic and one of the friendliest visits on the west shore. The range covers Valtenesi Chiaretto, Groppello, Lugana from their vineyards on the south shore, and a good sparkling rosé, and tastings are usually done with a plate of local cheese and salami on the terrace looking over the vines. Book a day ahead. It is a fifteen-minute drive from the lakefront in our guide to Salò.
Cavaion Veronese, in the hills between Bardolino and Affi
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Matilde Poggi’s small organic estate in the hills behind Bardolino and Affi makes the Bardolino that wine people talk about: light, fresh, meant to be drunk slightly cool, along with a Chiaretto called Rodòn that is one of the best rosés on the lake. It is a working farm rather than a visitor centre, so tastings are by appointment only and are led by whoever is free, which is often the family. It sits ten minutes inland from the lake road and pairs well with a morning on the lakefront at Garda.
Cà Maiol is one of the largest Lugana estates, on the flat vineyards between Desenzano and Sirmione, with a big modern tasting room and shop that is open most days without booking. The Lugana range runs from the fresh Prestige to the richer Molin and Fabio Contato selections, and there are Valtenesi reds and rosés as well. It is the easiest cellar door on the south shore to drop into on the way to or from the motorway. Desenzano’s old harbour is ten minutes away; see our guide to Desenzano.
Custoza, Sommacampagna, between Peschiera del Garda and Verona
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The big cooperative at Custoza, in the low hills between Peschiera and Verona, makes most of the Custoza white you will drink around the lake, along with Bardolino, Chiaretto and Lugana from its members’ vineyards. It is not a romantic visit, more a large shop with a tasting counter and stacked pallets, but the prices are the lowest on this list, with everyday bottles at €5–8 and a good Custoza Superiore for not much more. Open six days a week without booking, 15 minutes from Peschiera and handy on the way to Verona airport.
Riva del Garda · Via San Nazzaro, on the edge of Riva del Garda
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The Trentino end of the lake is more about mountains than vines, but the Agraria cooperative in Riva is worth an hour. It is both a winery and an olive mill, with a large shop on the edge of town selling its own Trentino whites, sparkling wine, Marzemino reds, grappa and Garda Trentino DOP olive oil, and a tasting counter where you can try several of them. It is a flat ten-minute cycle from the harbour and opens without booking. The rest of the town is in our guide to Riva del Garda.
Three names cover most of it. Bardolino, a light red from the east shore, and its rosé, Chiaretto, which is the lake's summer drink. Lugana, a white from the clay south of Sirmione that ages surprisingly well. And Custoza, a crisp white blend from the hills towards Verona. The Valtenesi on the west shore makes its own Chiaretto and reds from Groppello. Amarone and Valpolicella are made a short drive east of the lake.
Do I need to book a winery tasting on Lake Garda?
For a guided tasting or a cellar tour, yes, usually a day or two ahead, and a week ahead in September. For simply buying wine, most cellar-door shops open six days a week without booking and will pour you a taste of whatever is open. Zeni in Bardolino, Cà Maiol in Lugana, the Custoza cooperative and the Agraria in Riva are all drop-in friendly; the smaller family estates such as Le Fraghe are appointment only.
How much does a wine tasting cost on Lake Garda?
Guided tastings of three to five wines run €15–35 per person, more if food is included or if the flight goes up to Amarone. Tasting at the shop counter before you buy is usually free or a few euros a glass. Organised tours with transport from the resorts cost €70–120 per person for a half day visiting two or three estates. Buying a couple of bottles at the end is expected rather than required.
Can I visit Lake Garda vineyards without a car?
Yes, several. Zeni and Guerrieri Rizzardi are both walkable from the Bardolino lakefront, so a ferry to Bardolino makes a car-free wine day. The Agraria in Riva is a flat cycle from the harbour. Zenato is a short taxi from Peschiera station. For the Valtenesi and Lugana estates you need a car, a taxi or a booked tour, since buses do not go near them.
When is the best time to visit the vineyards?
September is the best month: the harvest is on, the estates are busy and smell of grapes, and the weather is still warm. Late September and early October bring the Bardolino grape and wine festival on the lakefront, a proper town party with tasting stands. Spring is quieter and the vines are green. Avoid August if you can, when the small estates are stretched and some close for a fortnight. Winter visits are possible but book ahead.
Is Valpolicella worth a day trip from Lake Garda?
Yes, if you like big reds. The Valpolicella hills start about 30 minutes east of Bardolino by car, with famous Amarone estates around Fumane, Negrar and Sant'Ambrogio open for tastings by appointment. Tastings are pricier than on the lake, €30–60, because the wines are. You can taste Amarone without leaving the lake at Zeni and Zenato, which own Valpolicella vineyards. Base yourself on the east shore, for instance in Lazise, to make the drive short.
What is Chiaretto?
Chiaretto is the pale rosé made on both sides of the lake: from Corvina and Rondinella grapes in Bardolino on the east shore, and from Groppello in the Valtenesi on the west. It is dry, light in alcohol and made to be drunk young and cold, ideally on a lakefront wall at 7pm. A glass costs €3–5 in a bar and a bottle €7–12 at the cantina. If you drink one local wine on holiday, make it this.
Lugana or Custoza, which white should I buy?
Lugana is the richer of the two, made from Turbiana on the south shore, with more body and the ability to age; it suits lake fish and risotto. Custoza is a lighter, crisper blend from the hills towards Verona and usually cheaper, a good aperitivo and pizza wine. Buy Custoza for everyday drinking and a few bottles of Lugana Superiore to keep, then pair them with dinner from our list of the best Lake Garda restaurants.
Can I ship wine home from Lake Garda?
The bigger estates such as Zeni, Zenato and Ca' dei Frati can arrange shipping within the EU and to the UK, though duties and courier costs mean it only makes sense for a case or more. Most people drive it home or check a box of six in hold luggage wrapped in clothes. If you are flying with hand luggage only, buy at the airport instead or accept that two bottles in a padded wine sleeve is the limit.
Are wineries suitable for children?
Most are relaxed about it. The bigger estates have gardens, the Zeni museum keeps children busy for twenty minutes, and tastings with food give them something to eat. The small family wineries are working farms, so keep an eye on toddlers near machinery in September. If the children have had enough, the beaches of the west shore are minutes from the Valtenesi estates; see our guide to the best Lake Garda beaches.
Our top pick
