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Why is there a vineyard in the Garden of Pojega?
Walking between the Green Theatre and the Belvedere of the Garden of Pojega, visitors now come across an element that seems as though it has always belonged to this landscape: a small bush-trained vineyard arranged around a large maple tree.
Its 250 vines are not intended for wine production. This is an ornamental vineyard, created as part of the Garden’s recent restoration, yet it tells the story of a much older relationship.
At Pojega, the vine is far more than a decorative presence. It is part of the Valpolicella landscape, of the history of the Rizzardi family, and of a winemaking culture that continues today through the work of the Guerrieri Rizzardi winery.
A vineyard within the garden walls
The ornamental vineyard lies on the eastern side of the Garden of Pojega, in the green expanse between the Green Theatre and the Belvedere.
It is located within the walls of the historic garden, yet the landscape surrounding it extends far beyond this boundary. Pojega has always been immersed in the vineyards of the Guerrieri Rizzardi estate, which produce some of the winery’s most representative wines, including Valpolicella, Ripasso Pojega and Amarone Villa Rizzardi.
The walls preserve the Garden’s eighteenth-century design without separating it from the agricultural landscape that surrounds it. The small ornamental vineyard makes this continuity clearly visible: on one side, the carefully designed landscape of Pojega; on the other, the estate’s working vineyards.
Two landscapes with different purposes, yet united by the same family history and the same care for the land.
A discovery in the 1812 Napoleonic cadastre
The decision to introduce a vineyard in this part of the Garden grew out of research carried out by landscape architect Giuseppe Rallo, who was responsible for the botanical restoration of Pojega.
“While studying the land parcels recorded in the 1812 Napoleonic Cadastre, we discovered that this area was once occupied by a kitchen garden. It therefore had an agricultural and productive function, naturally integrated into the Garden’s broader landscape design,” Rallo explains.
This discovery inspired the idea of restoring a cultivated character to the area by creating an ornamental vineyard. Rather than a literal reconstruction of the original kitchen garden, it is a contemporary interpretation that evokes both the site’s agricultural vocation and the winegrowing landscape of Valpolicella.
The vineyard is also surrounded by around 40 cherry trees, another crop that played an important role in Valpolicella agriculture until only a few years ago. Together, vines and cherry trees create a small rural landscape within the historic garden, keeping alive the memory of the crops that have shaped this territory.
The choice of a PIWI grape variety
The variety selected for the 250 vines also reflects the desire to bring together tradition, research and environmental awareness.
The vineyard is planted with Divico, a grape variety developed in Switzerland by the Agroscope research institute and belonging to the group of so-called PIWI varieties. These vines are naturally resistant to some of the main fungal diseases, including downy mildew, powdery mildew and botrytis, making it possible to significantly reduce the need for plant protection treatments.
In the context of a historic garden, visited daily by the public and home to a wide variety of botanical species, this choice takes on particular significance.
“The choice of Divico is consistent with the nature of this project: a vineyard created not for production, but to tell the story of the vine through a variety that brings together research, resilience and environmental awareness. It is a contemporary way of expressing the connection between Pojega and our family’s winemaking history,” explains Giuseppe Rizzardi, a descendant of the family that owns the Garden and Production Manager at Guerrieri Rizzardi.
From a winemaking perspective, Divico is a late-ripening grape variety capable of producing intense wines, rich in colour and tannins, with notes reminiscent of pepper, dark spices, blueberry and violet.
At Pojega, however, its role is purely ornamental. The grapes from this small vineyard are not used to produce Guerrieri Rizzardi wines.
Here, the vine was planted not for what it can produce, but for the story it can tell.
The ancient bush-vine training system
The training system also contributes to the character of this new space.
The 250 young vines are bush-trained, one of the oldest methods of vine cultivation. Each plant grows as an individual element, creating an orderly, rhythmic and almost sculptural composition.
Their spacing was carefully planned to take into account the fertility of the soil in Negrar. The vines are planted at least one and a half metres apart, allowing the vegetation sufficient space to develop harmoniously.
As the vines mature, the result will enter into dialogue with the architectural language of the Garden of Pojega.
Here, vegetation has always been treated as a material to be shaped: hedges, hornbeams, cypresses and trees form avenues, green rooms, perspective axes and theatrical backdrops. The small bush-trained vines now become part of this composition, adding a new layer of vegetation without disturbing the balance of the Garden.
A new element born from the restoration
The ornamental vineyard was created as part of the restoration work supported by funds from Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan.
The proposal that emerged from Giuseppe Rallo’s historical research was developed so that the new planting could enter into dialogue with the Garden’s botanical and landscape structure. Agostino Rizzardi, owner of the Garden of Pojega and of the Guerrieri Rizzardi winery, together with his brother Giuseppe, studied its layout in order to harmonise the vines with the large maple tree, the lawn and the surrounding views.
“This is a relatively small intervention, but one that is significant for the story it allows us to read. Restoring a historic garden does not necessarily mean freezing it in a single period. It means understanding its identity, preserving its essential features and allowing the place to continue expressing its relationship with the surrounding landscape,” Rizzardi explains.
The Pojega vineyard recalls the area’s former agricultural function, evokes the traditional crops of Valpolicella and introduces a contemporary reflection on sustainability in viticulture.
Above all, it makes visible the connection between the Garden of Pojega, the Rizzardi family and Guerrieri Rizzardi.
Inside and beyond the walls: one wine landscape
The ornamental vineyard should not be confused with the estate’s productive vineyards.
Its vines are located within the Garden walls and serve a landscape and narrative purpose. Beyond the historic perimeter, the vineyards cultivated by Guerrieri Rizzardi for the production of its wines extend across the surrounding land.
It is from this vine-covered landscape that some of the most distinguished expressions of Valpolicella Classica are born, including Guerrieri Rizzardi’s renowned Valpolicella Cuvée XVII, Ripasso Pojega and Amarone Villa Rizzardi.
The small vineyard within the walls therefore becomes a symbol. It does not produce wine, but draws the eye towards the vineyards that do. Rather than being a separate element, it offers an ornamental interpretation of the agricultural landscape that has surrounded Pojega for centuries.
Visiting the Garden thus means understanding that the beauty of this place does not end along its avenues. It continues through the estate’s vineyards, its agricultural work and the wines that express the character of Valpolicella.
From the Garden to the estate’s wines
After admiring the bush-trained vines between the Green Theatre and the Belvedere, the story can continue in the glass.
A guided tasting offers the opportunity to discover the Guerrieri Rizzardi wines produced from the vineyards surrounding the Garden and to explore more deeply the relationship between family, landscape and winemaking.
Visit the Garden of Pojega and complete the experience with a guided tasting of the estate’s wines: a journey from garden to vineyard, from landscape to glass, discovering two expressions of the same story.
Why is there a vineyard in the Garden of Pojega?
The ornamental vineyard was created during the recent restoration of the Garden of Pojega to reflect the historic connection between the Garden, the Rizzardi family and the winemaking culture of Valpolicella.
Where is the vineyard in the Garden of Pojega located?
It is located on the eastern side of the Garden, in the green area between the Green Theatre and the Belvedere, surrounding a large maple tree.
Which grape variety was planted?
Divico was chosen, a PIWI variety characterised by a natural resistance to some of the main fungal diseases affecting grapevines, making it suitable for cultivation with a reduced need for plant protection treatments.
What is a PIWI vineyard?
A PIWI vineyard is planted with grape varieties selected for their greater natural resistance to major fungal diseases such as downy mildew and powdery mildew. The term PIWI comes from the German word pilzwiderstandsfähig, meaning “fungus-resistant”. These varieties make it possible to reduce the need for plant protection treatments and therefore represent an interesting option for more sustainable viticulture. In the Garden of Pojega, the Divico variety was selected.
Is the vineyard used to produce Guerrieri Rizzardi wines?
No. The vineyard in the Garden of Pojega has an exclusively ornamental function, and its grapes are not used in the production of Guerrieri Rizzardi wines.
Can Guerrieri Rizzardi wines be tasted during a visit to the Garden of Pojega?
A visit to the Garden can be combined with a Guerrieri Rizzardi wine tasting experience, offering the opportunity to discover more about the winemaking tradition of the family and the estate.
