Guided Wine Tasting with Local Food at Paolo Cottini in Fumane

This tasting traces the short distance between two of Verona's wine worlds: the fresh, lake-influenced whites of Lugana and the structured reds of the Valpolicella hills. Your host, Giulia, the estate's hospitality manager (or a member of the team) will first guide you through the winery in Fumane. You'll visit the drying loft where grapes for Amarone rest, see the cellar, and walk through the barrel room.

After the tour, you'll settle in the tasting room to sample five labels that map this territory. The tasting starts with a Lugana DOC, a white from Turbiana grapes grown south of Lake Garda. It's followed by four reds from Valpolicella Classica: a Valpolicella Classico DOC, unoaked and fruit-forward; a Valpolicella Ripasso DOC Classico Superiore, aged for two years in French oak barriques; an Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOCG, the region's benchmark red from dried grapes; and finally, an Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva DOCG, which undergoes longer aging to develop more complexity.

Alongside the wines, you'll be served a board with Sant'Andrea mezzano, a local cow's-milk cheese, and a garlic-free salame nostrano from a producer in Cerea.