Ottella, the Lugana winery with an award-winning wine tourism experience
We visit the wonderful, historic Lugana winery, Cantina Ottella, on the southern shores of Lake Garda, Italy, known for its superb wines as well as its contemporary design and art collection
The spectacular Ottella barrel room - source: Winekeller
Wine and art is a compelling combination and nowhere moreso than in the Lugana wine region on the southern shores of Lake Garda, one of the most beautiful Italian lakes and one of the best places to visit in northern Italy. Here, in the popular lakeside town of Peschiera del Garda, you can find the historic Ottella winery, well known for its iconic wines but it is also a Great Wine Capitals 2025 Global Winner for the best of wine tourism, in the category of ‘Architecture and Landscapes’.
We have had the pleasure of visiting the Ottella winery which is truly a remarkable and immersive wine tourism experience - we got to sample some of the best Lugana wines but also to experience for ourselves the unique marriage of art, wine and nature that Ottella is recognised for - read on to share our experiences!
An introduction to Lugana wine
Lugana is a small village on the southern tip of Lake Garda, in the district of Sirmione, 40kms from the historic northern Italian city of Verona and it gives its name to the Lugana DOC, which is fast becoming one of the most popular wine regions in Italy, especially for Italian white wines.
What wine region is Lugana in?
The Lugana DOC covers an area of some 2,500 hectares to the south of Lake Garda, stretching inland about 10km from the lake shores and it straddles 2 Italian wine regions, Lombardy to the west and Veneto to the east. In Veneto it borders two other DOCs, Bianco di Custoza and Bardolino.
The mild Mediterranean climate here is tempered by the proximity of Lake Garda, but what makes the Lugana DOC special is the unique soils here, fine calcareous clay deposited by the melt water from the glacier which formed the lake. These unique soils give Lugana wine a wonderful acidity and mineral intensity.
What type of wine is Lugana?
Lugana is the heartland of the ancient native white grape variety, Trebbiano, known locally as Turbiana. According to the rules of the Lugana DOC, wines must be made from a minimum of 90% of this grape variety.
Lugana white wine has become increasingly popular in recent years, whilst the neighbouring Soave white wine has declined somewhat in popularity. In fact since 2000 the area under vine is reported to have increased fourfold.
Lugana white wine comes in a range of styles, but the basic Lugana DOC wine accounts for the growth in popularity and accounts for 90% of wine sales. The basic Lugana DOC wine is released in the spring of each year following the vintage and it is a zesty, refreshing, crisp Italian white wine, popular with an increasing number of palates. The Lugana Superiore wine is aged for a year, sometimes with oak (but only small amounts) and the Lugana Riserva wine is aged for 2 years, 6 months in the bottle. Lugana also produces some very good Italian sparkling wines.
Is Lugana wine sweet or dry?
Lugana wine is predominantly dry today, not so fruity, more mineral and more food-friendly than in former years when Lugana wines were a slightly sweeter, fruitier style - again in line with general white wine trends.
Cantina Ottella
The Ottella Winery, Lugana - Source: Winekeller
The Ottella estate in Peschiera Lugana has been in the Montresor family for over a century and is recorded as the only producer of Lugana in the province of Verona as far back as 1905.
The present owners are Francesco and Michele Montresor and it was their father, Lodovico, who started the Ottella wine business, combining his love of art with wine. He was also central to founding the Lugana DOC in 1967.
Francesco and Michele see themselves as guardians of their father’s wine, artistic and cultural legacy and remain committed to their father’s strong ethical and aesthetic values, combining the ‘practical’ with the ‘beautiful’, his passion for the Lugana landscape, for nature and art and his dedication to quality.
Ottella wines
Today Ottella has 90 hectares of vineyards in the prime locations of the Lugana wine region and benefits from a mild climate with the Monte Baldo mountain range to the east and the breezes from Lake Garda to the north.
Ottella produces about 900k bottles of wine per year. The range of wines reflects different expressions of the Turbiana grape, from the fresh, crisp Lugana DOC wine produced from estate vineyards in the southern area of Lake Garda, to the single vineyard ‘Le Creete’ wine, where vines are up to 100 years old, grapes are late-picked and the wine is aged for 6-8 months. Then there is the oak-aged Molceo Riserva wine, with 18 months lees contact and aged in bottle for one year before release and ‘Back to Silence’, which is fermented and aged in clay amphorae.
The new state-of-the-art Ottella winery
In 2013 the Montresor brothers took on an enormous project, spanning some 7 years, to build a new state-of-the-art winery to meet the demands of increased production. The renowned architect Francesco Copersino was responsible for the design of the new winery. This original project was designed to create both a contemporary space and a multi-sensory experience, combining art, wine and nature.
This project is an expression of Ottella’s core values - quality, respect and beauty - combining the practical with the beautiful and creating not just a functional space to make wine but along with that an incredible, living art gallery.
The spectacular tasting room at Ottella - Source: Winekeller
Global Best of Wine Tourism winner, 2025
Every year the ‘Great Wine Capitals Global Network’ reveals its ‘Best of Wine Tourism awards’ in each of its 12 member cities/regions (Verona is one of the member cities). These prestigious awards reward and recognise organisations for excellence and innovation across 7 different categories, delivering the highest quality visitor experiences. One of those categories is ‘Architecture and Landscapes’.
Ottella won the Global Best of Wine Tourism award 2025 as well as the local award for ‘Architecture and Landscapes’, acknowledging the unique visitor experience that has been carefully created through this architectural design project, allowing the visitor to enjoy and appreciate a beautiful space which cleverly integrates winemaking with nature and art.
Learn more about the Great Wine Capitals Global Network and its Best of Wine Tourism awards here.
Ottella - Global Winner Best of Wine Tourism 2025 - Source: Winekeller
A commitment to the world of art
The art collection on display at Ottella is seriously impressive (see below) and incorporates works by contemporary artists such as Mauro Staccioli and Giuseppe Bonetti. In addition to this the family contributes art to regional art galleries and supports cultural causes - for example Ottella is the patron of the Ottella for GAM (Galleria d’Arte Moderna) Contemporary Art Award.
Our tour of the Ottella winery
It’s hard to describe in words what a tour of the Ottella winery is like…
Hopefully these images help to convey what an incredible experience it is and how unlike any other winery tour we have experienced. It truly is multi-sensory, where art and design exists with the practical process of making wine, all capturing the beautiful, natural landscapes of Lugana.
A highlight has to be the spectacular barrel room, with its incredible overhead light structure, the fermentation room with the huge concrete vats and aesthetically beautiful amphorae and then there is the huge painting based on da Vinci’s Last Supper…!
All we say is go for yourself to experience it - it truly is an incredible wine tourism experience!
To book an Ottella tour and tasting see here.
What to see and do in the area
Visiting Lake Garda
Lake Garda, with its spectacular landscapes, its art, architecture and history, its lush Mediterranean flora and its wonderful local food and wines is one of the best places to visit in northern Italy.
For ideas and suggestions about visiting beautiful Lake Garda see here.
Exploring nearby Verona
The city of Verona is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a city that has almost stood still in time, full of historic wonders, including its specatcular Roman amphitheatre, with a world-famous, romantic legend thrown in for good measure. Verona is one of the top northeast Italy places to visit, a beautiful, historic city at the centre of many of the famous northern Italy wine regions.
Verona is easily accessible from the southern end of the lake. To learn more about Verona see here.
Lake Garda vineyards - source: Winekeller
Verona amphitheatre - source: Winekeller
Visit Sirmione and Peschiera del Garda
Sirmione, a spa town and once the home of soprano Maria Callas, is known as the ‘pearl of Lake Garda’ and is without doubt the most popular Lake Garda town. The lively old town lies on a peninsula that reaches about 4km into the lake and there’s lots to see and do here including the imposing Scaliger fortress, preserved ruins of one of the largest residential Roman villas in northern Italy, Grotte de Catullo, lovely beaches and stunning lakeside, panoramic views. Another reason to visit Sirmione (if you need one!) is the internationally renowned spa centre at the tip of the peninsula!
Nearby Peschiera del Garda is also definitely worth visiting. Due to its strategic location, the village developed as an outpost for military purposes, creating a fortified town and today it is a a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Peschiera del Garda is also an excellent starting point for visiting the other resorts on the lake. and from the Piazza Betteloni, you can take a boat to beautiful Desenzano, Salò, Lazise and Sirmione.
Scaliger fortress, Sirmione - Source: Italia.it
Peschiera - source: Lago di Garda.org
Conclusion and personal highlights
Visiting Ottella in Lugana was a magical experience and is a real recommendation for those who love wine but also appreciate the world of art and design and the incredible land and landscapes around Lake Garda. It is also a wonderful story of family and legacy, which we love to discover and love to share….
