Soave
Azienda Vitivinicola Pieropan Leonildo
0.3 km off the line
View wineryVeneto · Wine route · 1 day
Strada del Vino Soave A one-day, 40-kilometre loop from the walled town of Soave over three ridges and down four valleys of pergola vines, following the wine road association's own itinerary through Soave Classico and the Durello hills.
40
km end to end
1
1 day
7
stops, Soave to Monteforte d'Alpone
2
denominations crossed
Why this drive: Soave is the white wine Britain already buys. This loop shows where it comes from: a walled town, a castle, and four valleys of pergola vines. The FAO listed those vineyards in November 2018, the first wine-growing system in Italy on its heritage register. The drive follows the wine road association's own itinerary: Soave, Colognola, Illasi, Cazzano, then the Val d'Alpone. It is only forty kilometres, so the day belongs to the cellars. Coffele inside the walls, Ca' Rugate and Gini in the volcanic east, and Fongaro's Durella sparklers at the top of the valley.
The route, drawn
See the whole road, then drive it stop by stop
The map stays with you as you read: scroll the stops and it follows, or press a marker to jump. Leg times are door to door, before the views slow you down.
Layers
The drive
Numbered stops
Estates near the route
Stop 1 of 7 · Soave
1
Stop 1 · The walled town and the castle
Soave
ZTL city, see the driving notesThe walled town under the Scaligeri castle, seat of both the wine road association and the Consorzio, with three cellars inside walking distance of the gates.
What to taste here
- SoaveDOC DOC since 1968: 7,000 hectares, 3,000 growers on two hectares each, four bottles in five sold abroad
- Recioto di SoaveDOCG Veneto's first DOCG, 1998: Garganega dried for up to five or six months
- Coffele Ca' Visco From the first organic estate in the Classico zone, tasting room at Via Roma 5
The castle opens Tuesday to Sunday, 9 to 12 and 3 to 6 in summer, 2 to 4 in winter, closed Mondays. Coffele's tasting room is at Via Roma 5 inside the walls, the first organic estate in the Classico zone, with 25 hectares; the Cadis 1898 cooperative sells from Viale della Vittoria 128 on weekday hours; Monte Tondo at Via San Lorenzo 89 has 32 hectares, rooms and a pool; Pieropan takes cellar tour bookings by enquiry. Park outside the north gate, because the streets inside are camera-controlled on summer evenings and every Sunday.
Where to taste
Azienda Vitivinicola Pieropan Leonildo
Booking required
Wines to Try
A few wines from the estates above.
Where to eat
The day's meat or fish, then the cheese board
Locanda Lo Scudo. Via Borgo Covergnino 7, opposite the walls and under the castle, with rooms upstairs; book on 045 7680766
2
Stop 2 · Over the ridge on the Panoramica
Colognola ai Colli
First village on the association's own itinerary, reached over the ridge on the SP 37 Via Panoramica, where the Classico line gives way to the wider Soave DOC.
What to taste here
- SoaveDOC Outside the Classico line: the wider DOC from the limestone side, fuller and fruitier
- Veneto Valpolicella DOP olive oil The hills' other crop, pressed in the same villages
The SP 37 leaves Soave as Via Orgnano and climbs as Via Panoramica, the best view of the walls you will get all day. Colognola is one of the 13 member towns of the wine road and sits on the limestone side of the hills, which the Consorzio's writers credit with fuller, fruitier Soave than the basalt to the east. No table with its own site here: Illasi is seven minutes on.
3
Stop 3 · The villa valley
Illasi
The Val d'Illasi village of the 18th-century Villa Perez Pompei Sagramoso, whose greenhouses hold a Michelin-listed table, and of Dal Forno Romano's cellar.
What to taste here
- SoaveDOC Colli Scaligeri, the sub-zone named for the Della Scala lords' hills
- Amarone della ValpolicellaDOCG Dal Forno Romano's cellar is here, by appointment only
- Val d'Illasi olive oil The DOP oil the association's own itinerary stops for
Up the SP 10, Corso Dante Alighieri, into the Val d'Illasi. The valley is in the Colli Scaligeri sub-zone and presses Veneto Valpolicella DOP olive oil, which the association's own route stops for. Dal Forno Romano's cellar is here and opens by appointment only; it is the valley's Amarone legend, not a walk-in. Le Cedrare, in the villa greenhouses on Stradone Roma, opens Wednesday to Sunday.
Where to eat
The seasonal tasting menu in the villa greenhouses
Ristorante Le Cedrare. Stradone Roma 8, in the greenhouses of the 18th-century Villa Perez Pompei Sagramoso; Wednesday to Sunday, 12 to 2 and 7.30 to 10; call 045 652 0719
4
Stop 4 · The cherry valley
Cazzano di Tramigna
The cherry valley: Val Tramigna's vines and orchards, and a farm restaurant that cures its own soppressa and makes its own wine.
What to taste here
- SoaveDOC Val Tramigna Soave from the Colli Scaligeri slopes
- Corte Verzè's own bottles Whites, reds and sparklers made on the farm, poured with the lesso e pearà
The SP 37A crosses the ridge from Illasi in a few minutes. Cherries are the valley's June crop, and Corte Verzè on Via Cambran cooks lesso e pearà, the Veronese boiled meats with bread-and-pepper sauce, with house-cured soppressa, coppa and lardo and its own whites, reds and sparklers. It has rooms and a spa, so it is also the place to sleep if you stretch the loop to two days.
Where to taste
Dal Forno Romano
Booking required
Wines to Try
A few wines from the estates above.
Where to eat
Lesso e pearà, the Veronese boiled meats with bread-and-pepper sauce
Corte Verzè. Via Cambran 5; farm restaurant with rooms and a spa, house-cured soppressa, coppa and lardo; book on 045 7820855
5
Stop 5 · Ca' Rugate's valley
Montecchia di Crosara
Val d'Alpone, Ca' Rugate's home at Via Pergola 36, and the hosteria named after the valley's own sparkling wine, Durello.
What to taste here
- SoaveDOC Ca' Rugate's Monte Fiorentine and San Michele, Classico from the Alpone side
- Lessini Durello/Durello LessiniDOC The valley's Durella sparkler, by the glass at the hosteria named for it
- Val d'Alpone cherries June is cherry month here, on the association's own itinerary
The SP 37A follows Via Rio Albo along the hill to the Alpone valley. Ca' Rugate books its visits online and is the estate three of the nine guided tours on this page drive to. The Hosteria del Durello on Via Cabalao pours Ca' Rugate, Fongaro and Inama by the glass, Wednesday to Sunday. Cherries again in June: this is the valley the association's itinerary names for them.
Where to eat
Risotto al tartufo with a glass of Durello
Hosteria del Durello. Via Cabalao 11; Wednesday to Sunday, 12.30 to 2.30 and 7.30 to 10; pours Ca' Rugate, Fongaro and Inama; call 045 6540404
6
Stop 6 · The volcano and the fossils
Roncà
Head of the Val d'Alpone under the Calvarina volcano: the fossil museum, Fongaro's Durella sparklers and Dal Cero's Corte Giacobbe.
What to taste here
- Lessini Durello/Durello LessiniDOC Fongaro: fifty years of nothing but Durella metodo classico, organic since 1985
- SoaveDOC Corte Giacobbe's Soave from Monte Calvarina, mineral and made to age
- The fossil museum Shells and fish 40 to 50 million years old, 2 euro, weekends
The SP 17, Via Alpone, runs up the valley. The Museo Geopaleontologico at Via Garibaldi 1, founded 1973, opens Saturday and Sunday 9 to 12 and 3 to 6, weekdays by appointment, 2 euro: the shells and fish are 40 to 50 million years old, from the same volcanic seabed the vines now stand on. Fongaro at Via Motto Piane 12 has made nothing but metodo classico from Durella for fifty years, organic since 1985. Corte Giacobbe grows Soave and Durello on Monte Calvarina, about 600 metres. No table with its own site in the village; the Montecchia hosteria is ten minutes back.
7
Stop 7 · The basalt half of Classico
Monteforte d'Alpone
The basalt half of Soave Classico, Gini's fifteen generations on Via Matteotti, and two festivals a year. Soave is five minutes away, the A4 ten.
What to taste here
- SoaveDOC Classico from the volcanic side: Gini's Contrada Salvarenza and La Froscà, fifteen generations since 1570
- Soave SuperioreDOCG The DOCG since 2001, yields cut to ten tonnes a hectare
- Recioto di SoaveDOCG The dried-grape sweet wine, for the end of the day
Back down the SP 17 to the eastern half of the Classico zone, where the soil is decomposed volcanic rock and the wines run steelier than Soave's limestone side. Gini at Via Matteotti 42 has made wine here since 1570 and works the Contrada Salvarenza and La Froscà sites. The 95th Festa dell'Uva fills the old centre from 10 to 13 September 2026 and the 51st Festa del Vino from 22 to 24 May 2026. Il Convivio on Via Vittorio Veneto closes Mondays.
Where to eat
Chef Luca Comerlati's seasonal, zero-kilometre plates
Il Convivio Trattoria. Via Vittorio Veneto 18; Tuesday to Saturday 12 to 2.30 and 7 to 10.30, Sunday lunch only, closed Monday; call 045 4541262
Before you go
The practicalities
Visit prices are set by the winery and availability should be checked before travelling. Bookings open on the estate page or the provider's site.
When to go
September has two grape festivals
Harvest is the season here, and it comes with festivals: Monteforte d'Alpone's Festa dell'Uva runs 10 to 13 September 2026, Soave's from 19 to 21 September 2026, and both close the centres to cars. June is cherry month in the Val d'Alpone and Val Tramigna. Monteforte's Festa del Vino is 22 to 24 May 2026. The castle drops to winter afternoon hours, 2 to 4, outside summer, and the Roncà fossil museum opens only at weekends unless you book. Coffele's tasting room and the Cadis shop keep weekday hours all year.
Booking reality
Pieropan by enquiry, Inama and Ca' Rugate online
Pieropan is the only estate on this loop with bookable visits in our records: a cellar tour and the Villa Cipolla relais, both by enquiry. From the estates' own pages, read for this route: Inama books online, 25 euro for an hour or 45 for ninety minutes, paid at the winery; Ca' Rugate books online at visit.carugate.wine; Coffele's shop is walk-in Monday to Friday 9 to 1 and 2 to 7, tastings by email; the Cadis 1898 shop is open Monday to Friday 8 to 12.30 and 2 to 6; Gini and Monte Tondo want a phone call; Dal Forno Romano opens by appointment only.
Driving notes
Four valleys, one loop, an hour at the wheel
Leave the A4 at the Soave-San Bonifacio exit; Viale della Vittoria runs straight to the walls. The SP 37 climbs out of Soave as Via Orgnano and crosses the first ridge as Via Panoramica to Colognola, seven kilometres. The SP 10, Corso Dante Alighieri, goes up the Val d'Illasi; the SP 37A crosses to Cazzano and then follows Via Rio Albo along the hill to Montecchia, the longest leg at nine kilometres. The SP 17, Via Alpone, runs up to Roncà and back down to Monteforte, and Via San Lorenzo returns to Soave in five minutes. All of it is two-lane and slow behind tractors at harvest; club cyclists own the ridge roads on Sunday mornings. Fuel in Soave or San Bonifacio before you start; the valley villages have little. Soave's inner streets are on camera in the evenings and on Sundays, so park outside the north gate and walk.
ZTL
Soave's walls close to cars on summer evenings
Soave's restricted zone covers Via Roma, Piazza Antenna, Contrada degli Ebrei, Via Mastino II della Scala, Via Mattielli and Via Tiro a Segno, with four camera gates. From 1 May to 30 September it runs every evening from 8 to midnight and all day on Sundays and holidays from 9.30; from October to April it runs on Sundays and holidays only; from 27 December to 5 January every day from 9.30. Park outside the north gate and walk in: the walls are a few hundred metres across. The fine arrives by post months later. Verona's own zone is 25 kilometres away and never on this loop.
Getting a car
Collect at Verona airport, 50 minutes away
Verona Villafranca airport is 44 kilometres from Soave, about 50 minutes by the A4 to the Soave-San Bonifacio exit. You need the car all day: nine guided tours in our data reach these cellars, but no bus links the four valleys. Return the same way. Anyone based in Verona can take the train to San Bonifacio and collect there instead, three kilometres from the walls.
Leave the driving out
Do this route with a guide
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Tours in this wine area
Nearby, not the route itself
Amarone & Soave Wine Tour - Visit Verona, from Venice, Treviso
Full-day wine & culture experience from Venice to Verona, led by a certified sommelier and suitable for both wine lovers and curious beginners. Visit two small, family...
8 hours
From €245
Book via
Pagus Wine Tours® - Soave and Amarone - Half day wine tour
Soave and Amarone della Valpolicella: here you are the most famous white & red wines of Verona! A Pagus Wine Tours proposal to enjoy a complete range of different styl...
4 hours 30 minutes
From €146
Book via
Soave Wine Tasting and Vineyard Tour
This experience offers more than just a wine tasting—it’s a journey into the authentic soul of Soave. Located in the heart of the medieval village, the tour combines s...
2 hours
From €29
Book via
Where to sleep on the route
One estate on this road has rooms, so you can book the cellar and the bed together.
10
Reading the labels you'll pass
The wine country it crosses
Before you ask
Strada del Vino Soave, answered
It is an association, founded in 1999, with its seat at Foro Boario 1 in Soave. It has about 130 members: 13 towns across four valleys, plus cellars, farms and restaurants. The valleys are the Val di Mezzane, Val d'Illasi, Val Tramigna and Val d'Alpone. It describes an ideal path of about 50 kilometres. Our loop follows its own wine itinerary in order: Soave, Colognola ai Colli, Illasi, Cazzano di Tramigna, then the Val d'Alpone.
Forty kilometres and about an hour of driving. With the castle, two tastings and lunch it is a full day. Verona airport is 50 minutes away by the A4, so a day trip from Verona works; sleep at Corte Verzè in Cazzano or Monte Tondo in Soave if you want two.
Yes, at the two shops in town. Coffele's tasting room at Via Roma 5 is open Monday to Friday, 9 to 1 and 2 to 7, and at weekends; the Cadis 1898 cooperative shop at Viale della Vittoria 128 opens Monday to Friday, 8 to 12.30 and 2 to 6. Inama and Ca' Rugate book online, Pieropan by enquiry, Gini and Monte Tondo by phone, and Dal Forno Romano by appointment only.
Outside the walls at the north gate. Via Roma, Piazza Antenna, Contrada degli Ebrei and the lanes off them are a camera zone: every evening from 8 to midnight from May to September, all day from 9.30 on Sundays and holidays, and daily over Christmas. The walls are a few hundred metres across, so nothing inside is far.
September, for the harvest and the festivals: Monteforte's Festa dell'Uva is 10 to 13 September 2026 and Soave's 19 to 21 September 2026. June brings cherries in the Val Tramigna and Val d'Alpone. In winter the castle closes at 4 and the Roncà fossil museum opens weekends only, but the cellar shops keep weekday hours all year.
The original hills around Soave and Monteforte d'Alpone, first mapped in 1927. Soave has been a DOC since 1968 and must be at least 70 percent Garganega. Soave Superiore became a DOCG in 2001 and Recioto di Soave, the dried-grape sweet wine, in 1998. The limestone west of the town gives fuller wines, the basalt around Monteforte steelier ones. In November 2018 the FAO listed the traditional pergola vineyards as the first wine-growing system in Italy on its agricultural heritage register.
Lessini Durello, a sparkling wine from the Durella grape grown on the volcanic Lessini hills above Montecchia and Roncà. Fongaro at Roncà has made nothing else for fifty years, all metodo classico and organic since 1985, and the Hosteria del Durello at Montecchia pours it by the glass. The fossils in the Roncà museum, 40 to 50 million years old, come from the same seabed the vines stand on.
Soave is 25 kilometres from Verona and five minutes from the A4. West, the Valpolicella villages start 40 minutes away beyond the city; east, Vicenza is half an hour on the same motorway. Verona's centre has a camera zone of its own, so leave the car at the airport or a park-and-ride if you go in.
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