Notify me
2021 Bardolino “Le Fontane”
Corte Gardoni

At Les Pallières this year we are going to try our hand at making a cask of Gigondas rosé, so Daniel Brunier came down to meet with me and Jean-Marie Peyraud at Domaine Tempier for a serious rosé session. Pick the brain of the master, you know? We began with the Tempier rosé vintages 2003, 2002, 2000, and 1999 while the two vintners talked rosé theory and vinification. Then Jean-Marie dug out a 1990. Hmm, fourteen years old, still good, better than good. Age a rosé?
When we got to my place for lunch I pulled a magnum of 1983 Tempier rosé out of my cellar. Spectacular! Believe it or not, it is complex, fascinating, and delicious at 21. It is not old. It is fine with being 21. In this brochure about seven years ago I wrote about draining an old Tempier rosé with Richard Olney, Lulu, and Jean-Marie. It was one of Lucien’s rosés, 1953. We inhaled it.
Then to table, where I blew their minds like I knew I would with this amazing Bardolino: Red wine, now. The rosé story was just an opener, an intro. This Bardolino stunned them, folks, and they didn’t even know how low the price is. A luscious red, it is simply overflowing with good things. My guests found some cherries and berries, of course, liked the harmony, the this and the that, but the message is: try one, then come back for cases.
It also has, buried in its abundant, dazzling fruit, a tinge of the typical Italian bitterness, and that, I swear, really does the trick at table, even with, especially with, any recipe using tomatoes, like the zucchini/tomato gratin I served them. A good marriage, we all agreed. –September 2004
—Kermit Lynch
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2021 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | 60% Corvina, 30% Rondinella, 10% Other |
Appellation: | Bardolino |
Country: | Italy |
Region: | Veneto |
Producer: | Corte Gardoni |
Winemaker: | Piccoli family |
Soil: | Moraine |
Aging: | Several months of aging in stainless steel before bottling |
Farming: | Sustainable |
Alcohol: | 12% |
More from this Producer or Region

2021 Bianco di Custoza “Mael”
Italy | Veneto
A masterful blend of Garganega, Trebbiano, Trebbianello, and Riesling, this perfumed charmer punches far above its weight.

2021 Custoza “Greoto”
Italy | Veneto
A dry white with an intriguing aroma. You can drink it in good-sized swallows while floating on an inner tube.
Tom's Pick

2021 Bardolino Chiaretto Rosé “Nichesole”
Italy | Veneto
With notes of white peach, red berries, melon, and grapefruit, this Chiaretto is the quintessential Italian rosato for a summer evening al fresco.

2020 Bardolino “Le Fontane”
Italy | Veneto
September Adventures Club ~ There is actually a depth of interest that can reflect man’s insignificance in the solar system. Take me to the terrace!

2021 Colli Trevigiani Verdiso Frizzante “Sui Lieviti Erti”
Italy | Veneto
The Gregoletto family bottles this frizzante rendition of Veneto’s indigenous variety, Verdiso, with the secondary fermentation occurring in-bottle and left unfiltered.

2020 Corvina Veronese “Becco Rosso”
Italy | Veneto
August Club Gourmand ~ The Piccoli brothers farm their vines in the grand cru area of Bardolino, just southeast of Lake Garda, giving us an absolutely lip-smacking rosso.

Vino Spumante “Cuvée dei Vignato”
Italy | Veneto
Durella with a splash of Chardonnay—rich texture, laser-sharp acidity, and bone-dry finish.

2020 Bianco di Custoza “Mael”
Italy | Veneto
A masterful blend of Garganega, Trebbiano, Trebbianello, and Riesling, this perfumed charmer punches far above its weight.

2020 Prosecco Treviso Sui Lieviti
Italy | Veneto
This brisk, fizzy, stony nectar has an undeniable gift for bestowing unparalleled palate stimulation and mental reinvigoration.

2020 Bardolino Superiore “Pràdicà”
Italy | Veneto
Lovely right now, but a candidate for cellaring as well. It is cool to drink some reds cool.
About The Producer
Corte Gardoni
Gianni Piccoli grew up surrounded by orchards, but he had wine in his blood so when an estate with extensive vineyards came up for sale in 1971 he jumped at the opportunity. For years the grapes of Corte Gardoni were sold to cooperatives, but Gianni felt that their wines lacked soul. In 1980 he broke those ties and began crafting his own wine, focusing on the character of the grapes and terroir. Gianni passed away in 2020 with nearly fifty vintages under his belt at the helm of Corte Gardoni. In the process, he became a local hero and proud ambassador of Bardolino and its terroir, setting the stage for a new generation to follow in his path creating humble, delicious wines from native grapes that speak to the region and its traditions. Corte Gardoni remains in capable hands today, as Gianni's three sons had already taken over daily operations at the winery several years before his passing. Mattia is in charge of the cellar, Stefano manages the vineyards, and Andrea helps both of his brothers and also handles the commercialization of the wines.
About The Region
Veneto
Italy’s most prolific wine region by volume, the Veneto is the source of some of the country’s most notorious plonk: you’ll find oceans of insipid Pinot Grigo, thin Bardolino, and, of course, the ubiquitous Prosecco. And yet, the Veneto produces the highest proportion of DOC wine of any Italian region: home to prestigious appellations like Valpolicella, Amarone, and Soave, it is capable of excelling in all three colors, with equally great potential in the bubbly and dessert departments.
With almost 200,000 acres planted, the Veneto has a wealth of terroirs split between the Po Valley and the foothills of the Alps. While the rich soils of the flatlands are conducive to mechanization, high yields, and mass production of bulk wine, the areas to the north offer a fresher climate and a diversity of poor soil types, ideal for food-friendly wines that show a sense of place. Whether it’s a charming Prosecco Superiore from the Glera grape, a stony Soave or Gambellara from Garganega, or a Corvina-based red in any style, the Veneto’s indigenous grape varieties show real character when worked via traditional production methods.
Since his first visit in 1979, Kermit has regularly returned to the Veneto to enjoy its richness of fine wines and local cuisine. Our collaboration with Corte Gardoni, our longest-running Italian import, is a testament to this. The proximity of beautiful cities like Verona and Venice, with their deep culinary heritage, certainly doesn’t hurt, either.
More from Veneto or Italy
2020 Colli Trevigiani Manzoni Bianco
Gregoletto Italy | Veneto
2021 Colli Trevigiani Verdiso
Gregoletto Italy | Veneto
2020 Corvina Veronese “Becco Rosso”
Corte Gardoni Italy | Veneto
Prosecco Superiore Brut Magnum
Sommariva Italy | Veneto
Vino Spumante “Cuvée dei Vignato”
Davide Vignato Italy | Veneto
2020 Bardolino “Le Fontane”
Corte Gardoni Italy | Veneto
2019 Veneto Garganega “Col Moenia”
Davide Vignato Italy | Veneto
2020 Prosecco Treviso Sui Lieviti
Gregoletto Italy | Veneto
2021 Colli Trevigiani Merlot
Gregoletto Italy | Veneto
Prosecco Superiore Brut
Sommariva Italy | Veneto
2021 Veneto Frizzante “Primo Incontro”
Davide Vignato Italy | Veneto
2020 Veneto Garganega “Col Moenia”
Davide Vignato Italy | Veneto
2020 Colli Trevigiani Manzoni Bianco
Gregoletto Italy | Veneto
2021 Colli Trevigiani Verdiso
Gregoletto Italy | Veneto
2020 Corvina Veronese “Becco Rosso”
Corte Gardoni Italy | Veneto
Prosecco Superiore Brut Magnum
Sommariva Italy | Veneto
Vino Spumante “Cuvée dei Vignato”
Davide Vignato Italy | Veneto
2020 Bardolino “Le Fontane”
Corte Gardoni Italy | Veneto
2019 Veneto Garganega “Col Moenia”
Davide Vignato Italy | Veneto
2020 Prosecco Treviso Sui Lieviti
Gregoletto Italy | Veneto
2021 Colli Trevigiani Merlot
Gregoletto Italy | Veneto
Prosecco Superiore Brut
Sommariva Italy | Veneto
2021 Veneto Frizzante “Primo Incontro”
Davide Vignato Italy | Veneto
2020 Veneto Garganega “Col Moenia”
Davide Vignato Italy | Veneto
Kermit once said...

Kermit once said...
Living wines have ups and downs just as people do, periods of glory and dog days, too. If wine did not remind me of real life, I would not care about it so much.