Wine Appreciation Cruises in Italy

Italy is a major exporter of wine, with a heritage dating back more than 2,000 years to Roman times, which is why we’ve decided to launch a new Wine Appreciation cruise on the waterways of Venice and the Po Valley. 

Ferrara from Above

Excursion Highlights

  • A ride on a private boat to the island of Sant’Erasmo, where guests will enjoy an exclusive tasting at the domain of Orto di Venezia, Venice’s only winery – famous for the production of Casanova’s favourite wine
  • Guests will also tour the Renaissance gardens of the 17th century wine estate of Villa Widmann Borletti, followed, of course, by a tasting
  • The crisp, dry wines grown from the Garganega grape are on the itinerary during a visit to medieval town of Soave, origin of the world-famous white wine of the same name. This wine can be paired with “almost anything” and is one of the most popular in Italy
  • In addition to the various wine-related excursions, there are plenty of other activities on the itinerary, such as a visit to the fishing port of Chioggia; and a guided tour of the beautiful 14th century Estense Castle in the Renaissance city of Ferrara.

Widmann Borletti Gardens - River Cruises in Italy

The Region & The Wine

The Veneto region and the Po Valley offer some of the most dynamic scenery in all of Europe. To start with, Venice, is an architecture lover’s haven, due to the city’s bloody past there is a wide array of influences, Byzantine, Roman, Moorish, Gothic and Renaissance to name but a few! In addition to this the humid subtropical climate of the Po Valley and its various nature reserves makes it a stellar spot for wildlife, and it is not unusual to see the likes of pink flamingos and wild peacocks.

With regards to wine, Italy is one of the few nations that comes close to rivaling France in terms of production and variety.  In Veneto there are two distinctive geographical areas for the vineyards; the eastern part, between the hills of Treviso and the Atlantic coast which typically produces the likes of Glera (Prosecco) & Merlot, and the western part near Verona which makes Garganega & Corvina. On your barge cruise however, you’ll sample fine wines from all over Italy!

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