Wine explained
Valpolicella Classico, Valpantena and the Wider Zone
Valpolicella Classica, Valpantena e zona DOC
The Valpolicella wine zone covers all or part of 19 comuni in the province of Verona. Within it, the official rules define two smaller zones whose names may appear on the label: Classico, the five comuni of Negrar, Marano, Fumane, Sant'Ambrogio and San Pietro in Cariano, and Valpantena, the valley north of Verona with its own boundary. Wine from the rest of the zone carries no mention.
The producers' consortium describes the same area as three zones: the Classica, the Valpantena and the zona DOC Valpolicella, which takes in parts of the comune of Verona and the eastern valleys of Mezzane, Illasi and Tramigna. This page sets out what the four disciplinari say about each zone, how the consortium describes its valleys, soils and climate, what the Classico and Valpantena names mean on a bottle, and what to see in each zone on a visit. For the five Classico villages in detail, see our page on the Valpolicella Classico villages.
One production area, two mentions, three zones
The disciplinari of Valpolicella, Valpolicella Ripasso, Amarone and Recioto draw the same production area, word for word. It comprises all or part of 19 comuni: Marano, Fumane, Negrar, Sant'Ambrogio, San Pietro in Cariano, Dolcè, Verona, San Martino Buon Albergo, Lavagno, Mezzane, Tregnago, Illasi, Colognola ai Colli, Cazzano di Tramigna, Grezzana, Pescantina, Cerro Veronese, San Mauro di Saline and Montecchia di Crosara. The boundary is described in detail, place by place: it starts on the cliff above the bend of the Adige near Ceraino, runs east along the hills and comes back west along the foot of the slopes, following the Brenner railway from Parona station to Domegliara station for part of the way.
Inside that area the rules define two geographical mentions, Classico and Valpantena, each with its own boundary. The producers' consortium describes the whole area as three zones: the zona Classica, the zona Valpantena and the zona DOC Valpolicella, the last being the parts of the comune of Verona and the valleys of Illasi, Tramigna and Mezzane that carry no mention (Consorzio per la Tutela dei Vini Valpolicella, 2026).
The consortium puts the wine-growing area at 300 square kilometres, with 8,621 hectares of vineyard. It publishes no breakdown of those hectares by zone.
The land: hills shaped like a hand
The disciplinari describe the production area as the whole foothill belt of the province of Verona, from Lake Garda almost to the border of the province of Vicenza. It is a series of valleys and hills running down into the plain in the shape of a hand. The Lessini mountains shelter it from the north, Lake Garda is close, and the hill and valley-floor vineyards face south, so the climate is described as mild and not very rainy, close to Mediterranean on the low hills and in the valley floors. Vineyards reach up to about 500 m above sea level; on the low and middle hills they face mostly south.
The disciplinari give average annual rainfall as 850 to 1000 mm. The consortium's climate page gives 900 to 1100 mm, with the hills receiving about a third more than the plain. The two published figures do not agree, so both are given here.
The consortium's soils page, based on the soil map of ARPAV, the Veneto environmental agency, lists several kinds: deep alluvial soils of the Adige plain in the south-west; alluvial deposits along the Lessini streams; the white and pinkish marly limestones known as Biancone and Scaglia Rossa on the hills, with 10% to 20% active limestone; and soils on volcanic basalt, with 0% to 3%. The disciplinari name the same rocks: limestone, dolomite, basalt and moraine and river deposits.
Valpolicella Classico: five comuni west of Verona
The Classico mention is reserved for grapes from Negrar, Marano, Fumane, Sant'Ambrogio and San Pietro in Cariano. For most of its length the southern edge of the Classico zone follows the 100 m contour line, which the disciplinari describe as the clear limit between the fluvio-glacial and Eocene terrace and the largely irrigated plain sloping down to the Adige.
The consortium divides the Classica into five areas. Sant'Ambrogio, the first comune from the west, lies low on the left side of the Fumane valley; its vineyards get cool northern breezes and warm winds from Lake Garda, and its soils are mainly calcareous. San Pietro in Cariano closes the zone to the south, mostly flat with some hills, the highest being Castelrotto at 172 m, on alluvial soils. The Fumane valley rises steeply towards the Corno d'Aquilio and is one of the coldest of the five, on stratified limestone. The Marano valley runs north towards Monte Castelon, with an amphitheatre of vineyards terraced on dry-stone walls called marogne and basalt soils known locally as toari. In the Negrar valley, furthest from the lake, the cold winds from the Lessini count for more; the valley narrows as it climbs past Mazzano to the ridge between Fane and Prun.
For trains and buses from the city to the Classico villages, see getting to Valpolicella from Verona, and from the lake, Valpolicella from Lake Garda.
Valpantena: the valley north of Verona
The Valpantena has its own boundary in all four disciplinari. It begins at San Benedetto, follows the main zone boundary to the 655 m mark, then runs south through or near Erbino, Croce di Romagnano, the slopes below Monte Gazzo, Villa Marchiori and Poiano before turning back along the hills past Torre n. 3 and Torre n. 4 to its starting point. Grapes from inside that line may carry the Valpantena name on all four wines, except that the Recioto spumante may use it and the Classico mention may not appear on that type at all.
The consortium places the Valpantena halfway between the Classica and the eastern zone, reaching from close to Verona up to the highest tops of the Lessini, and narrowing above Grezzana. It says the valley's shape strengthens the air circulation and that the climate has marked differences between day and night temperatures.
On the consortium's map of the zone, the landmarks marked in the Valpantena are Villa Arvedi at Grezzana and Santa Maria in Stelle with its underground chamber, the ipogeo. Villa Arvedi is covered on our page about the historic villas of Valpolicella. For a visit, ask the winery when you book which zone its vineyards are in, since the Valpantena name only appears on wines made from grapes grown inside the valley's boundary.
The eastern valleys: Mezzane, Illasi and Tramigna
East of the Valpantena, the production area takes in the valleys the consortium calls the zona DOC Valpolicella. Wines from here may be Valpolicella, Ripasso, Amarone or Recioto, but without the Classico or Valpantena mention.
The consortium describes three valleys. The Mezzane valley starts in the territory of Lavagno, at Vago, and runs north to the comune of San Mauro di Saline; it is climatically uniform with a wide range of soils. The Illasi valley rises more quickly, reaching greater heights in a shorter space, and is the longest of the valleys cutting into the Veronese mountains to the east. The Tramigna valley at Cazzano is further east and shorter, running from the hills near Campiano to south of Soave, on volcanic soils. The landmarks the consortium marks here include the castles of Illasi and Montorio and Villa Pompei Carlotti at Illasi.
The disciplinari show where the area ends. Its boundary reaches the point where the comuni of Tregnago, Cazzano di Tramigna and San Giovanni Ilarione meet, where it touches the Soave wine zone, and then runs past Montecchia di Crosara and Colognola ai Colli. Wineries here are spread along the valleys, so ask about access when you book and plan the day so that nobody who has been tasting drives.
What Classico and Valpantena mean on the label
A geographical mention is a promise about where the grapes grew and where the wine was made. For Amarone and Recioto with the Classico or Valpantena mention, the drying and the winemaking must take place within that zone. For Valpolicella and Ripasso with a mention, the winemaking (and for Ripasso the ripasso itself) must take place there. Wineries inside the wider area may work grapes from their own registered Classico or Valpantena vineyards and may buy up to a further third of their own production from vineyards registered for the same mention.
Without a mention, the rules are looser. Valpolicella may be made and aged anywhere in the province of Verona, and Amarone and Recioto must be dried and made within the production area, with individual exceptions for wineries that traditionally worked within the comuni concerned. Bottling, for all four wines, must take place in the areas set for winemaking and ageing, again with individual exceptions.
The mention says nothing about quality ranking: the rules set the same grape mix, alcohol and ageing minimums with or without it. What it gives a visitor is a map. To taste wines from the Classico, base yourself in the five comuni; for the villages, wineries and transport see where to stay for Valpolicella, and for tours that cover several zones in a day, Valpolicella wine tours from Verona. For the grapes grown in all three zones, see our page on Corvina, Corvinone and Rondinella.
Frequently asked questions
5 questionsWhat does Classico mean on Valpolicella and Amarone?
Classico means the grapes come from the five comuni of Negrar, Marano, Fumane, Sant'Ambrogio and San Pietro in Cariano, and that the drying (for Amarone and Recioto) and the winemaking took place inside that zone. The mention may appear on Valpolicella, Ripasso, Amarone and still Recioto, but not on the sparkling Recioto.
What is Valpantena?
Valpantena is the valley north of Verona, around Grezzana, and the second geographical mention the Valpolicella rules allow on the label, with its own boundary. The producers' consortium describes it as lying halfway between the Classico zone and the eastern valleys, narrowing above Grezzana, with marked differences between day and night temperatures.
How many comuni make up the Valpolicella wine zone?
The production area of all four Valpolicella wines covers all or part of 19 comuni in the province of Verona, from Dolcè and Sant'Ambrogio on the Adige in the west to Montecchia di Crosara in the east. The consortium puts the wine-growing area at 300 square kilometres with 8,621 hectares of vineyard.
Is Valpolicella Classico better than plain Valpolicella?
The rules do not say so. Classico is a geographical mention: it fixes where the grapes grew and where the wine was made, but the grape mix, alcohol and ageing minimums are the same with or without it. Wines from the Valpantena and the eastern valleys follow identical production rules.
Which Valpolicella zone is closest to Verona?
The comune of Verona is itself part of the production area, and the consortium describes the Valpantena as reaching from close to the city up to the tops of the Lessini. The five Classico comuni lie north-west of the city, between the Adige and the Lessini; our page on getting to Valpolicella from Verona covers the train and bus routes.
Related guides
3 guides- Wine areaThe Valpolicella Classico Villages: San Pietro in Cariano, Negrar, Fumane, Marano and Sant'AmbrogioThe five Valpolicella Classico villages: what to see in San Pietro in Cariano, Negrar, Fumane, Marano and Sant'Ambrogio, with opening times and buses.
- Wine explainedCorvina, Corvinone, Rondinella and the Other Amarone GrapesThe grapes of Amarone from the official rules: Corvina and Corvinone 45% to 95%, Rondinella 5% to 30%, up to 25% others such as Molinara and Oseleta.
- Wine explainedWhat Is Amarone? Grapes, Drying and the Rules Behind the WineAmarone explained from its official rules: Corvina and Rondinella dried in lofts, 14% minimum alcohol, no pressing before 1 December, two years of ageing.