It’s called Orto di Venezia. There are many curiosities about the Orto di Venezia that deserve to be revealed and known to enhance a product made in Italy that has no equal in the rest of the world and that can not be produced elsewhere.

Make yourself comfortable. Here’s everything you need to know about the Orto di Venezia.

10 things you need to know about Orto di Venezia

We have collected the main information about the Orto di Venezia in 10 points.

1. Orto di Venezia is the only wine produced in the Venice Lagoon

As the name suggests, Orto di Venezia is a white wine produced in the Venice Lagoon. But it is not a wine like any other: it is the only wine produced within the borders of the Venetian Lagoon.

2. Orto di Venezia is produced on the island of Sant'Erasmo

Orto di Venezia is produced on the island of Sant'Erasmo, located in the northern part of the Venice Lagoon. It is the second island, by extension, of the entire Lagoon, preceded only by Venice.

3. Orto di Venenzia is so called because the island of Sant'Erasmo supplied food to the city

The name Orto di Venezia reveals one of the characteristic features of the island of Sant'Erasmo, that is its great agricultural vocation. The Italian word "orto" means vegetable garden. The island has always stood out for its landscape rich in vineyards, vegetable gardens and farmland, where many vegetables are grown, such as the typical purple artichoke (called castraure). In the past, many farmers, who lived in the city, reached the island to cultivate the land and its products. For this reason, Sant'Erasmo was considered a real vegetable garden from which the city of Venice could stock up on vegetables. And for this reason Sant'Erasmo was called Orto di Venezia.

4. Orto di Venezia is mainly produced with Malvasia Istriana grapes

Orto di Venezia is made from grapes of the Malvasia Istriana vine, with the contribution of other Italian vines. The Malvasia Istriana white grape variety is widespread between Friuli Venezia Giulia and Veneto. It was "discovered" and brought to these areas by Venetian sailors directly from the Peloponnese, in Greece. It quickly spread to the rest of the Adriatic area, including the Istrian peninsula from which it takes its name.

Venice: photo of Dorian Mongel on Unsplash

5. Orto di Venezia is produced from vines that have their own roots

Orto di Venezia is made from grapes of vines that have their own roots and that have not been grafted on roots of American plants. Most of the Italian vines, however, are characterized by roots belonging to American vines. This solution was adopted to fight the phylloxera of the vine that devastated European viticulture between the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Few vines in a few areas of our country managed to resist. In short, even from this point of view Orto di Venezia proves to be a unique wine.

6. Orto di Venezia is produced by Michel Thoulouze

Orto di Venezia is produced by the winery founded in 2000 by Michel Thoulouze, a television manager of French origin, who, fascinated by the island, decided to buy a house in Sant'Erasmo and 11 hectares of land. Speaking to the local farmers, Thoulouze discovered that these lands were the most suitable for the cultivation of the vine. With the collaboration of two agricultural engineers, Lydia and Claude Bourguignon, and Alain Graillot of Crozes Ermitage, a famous French wine producer, 4 hectares of vineyards were cultivated. In 2008 the first bottle of Orto di Venezia was released.

7. Orto di Venezia is characterized by a great minerality

Orto di Venezia is a straw yellow wine with greenish reflections. The nose reveals clear and well defined aromas, thanks to the aging strictly in steel and not in wood. There are scents of tropical fruits and white flowers, with a almond hints. The taste is very particular and typical: it stands out for minerality and iodine sensations that refer to the Lagoon and give freshness to the sip. Structure and body are above the average of white wines.

8. Orto di Venezia is for sale online on Wineshop.it

If you want to buy this unique wine you can do it thanks to our online wine sales website. Here is for sale the Orto di Venezia.

9. Orto di Venezia is also produced in Magnum format, aged under water

Orto di Venezia wines in Magnum format are distinguished by their aging under water, on the bottom of the Venice Lagoon. Here, Orto di Venezia Magnum wines find the right temperatures and a dark area, in lack of light, to refine in the best way.

10. Orto di Venezia Magnum is for sale online on Wineshop.it

In our online wine shop you can also buy the Orto di Venezia Magnum. In short, you can choose the size of Orto di Venezia bottle.

Did you know the Orto di Venezia ? Did you know all these curiosities about the Orto di Venezia ? Have you ever tasted it? What do you think?