Novaia is a family-run winery based in the heart of Valpolicella Classica, near Marano di Valpolicella. The estate has been in the Vaona family since the early 20th century and is now run by brothers Diego and Giampaolo Vaona, who have become leading advocates for organic viticulture in the region.

Novaia farms around 10 hectares of vineyards, all organically certified, focusing on low yields, biodiversity and traditional pergola training where appropriate. Alongside Amarone, the estate produces Valpolicella Classico, Valpolicella Superiore and Ripasso, all from indigenous varieties including Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella and Molinara.

Veneto, located in northeastern Italy, is one of the country’s most productive and diverse wine regions, known for both quantity and quality. Stretching from the foothills of the Alps to the Adriatic Sea, it benefits from a variety of microclimates and soil types, enabling the successful cultivation of numerous grape varieties.

The region’s climate is largely temperate, with warm summers and cold winters. The Alps provide shelter from harsh northern weather, while breezes from Lake Garda and the Adriatic Sea help to moderate temperatures and reduce disease pressure. These climatic influences support healthy ripening and maintain good acidity in the grapes.

Veneto is home to several renowned wine areas, including Valpolicella, Soave, and the Prosecco-producing hills of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene. In Valpolicella, native red varieties such as Corvina, Rondinella, and Molinara are used to produce a range of wines, from fresh Valpolicella Classico to powerful Amarone della Valpolicella. Soave focuses on white wines made primarily from Garganega, offering citrus, almond, and floral notes.

Prosecco, made mainly from the Glera grape, has become one of the world’s most popular sparkling wines. Other important grapes include Merlot, Pinot Grigio, and Chardonnay, reflecting the region’s balance of tradition and international appeal.

Corvina is a red grape variety native to Italy’s Veneto region, most famously used in the production of Valpolicella, Amarone, and Recioto wines. It is prized for its bright acidity, moderate tannins, and vibrant red fruit character, often showing notes of sour cherry, plum, herbs, and almond.

Corvina is a late-ripening grape with thick skins, which makes it well-suited to the appassimento process—where grapes are partially dried after harvest to concentrate sugars and flavours. This technique is essential in producing the powerful and age-worthy Amarone and the sweet, luscious Recioto della Valpolicella. In fresh styles like Valpolicella Classico, Corvina contributes brightness, freshness, and aromatic lift.

Corvina is typically blended with other regional varieties such as Rondinella and Molinara, though single-varietal examples are increasingly common. It thrives on well-drained hillside vineyards with calcareous or volcanic soils, particularly around Verona.

Outside Italy, Corvina is rarely planted but has small experimental holdings in countries like Australia and the U.S., where producers are exploring its potential in both dry and appassimento-inspired styles.

Rondinella is a red grape variety native to Italy’s Veneto region, best known as a key component in the wines of Valpolicella and Bardolino. Believed to be a natural cross involving Corvina, Rondinella has been cultivated since at least the mid-20th century and is valued more for its reliability than for intense varietal character. The vine is vigorous, resistant to disease, and produces consistently high yields, making it a dependable partner in blends.

Its berries are medium-sized with thick skins, which dry well—an important trait for the appassimento method used in Amarone and Recioto production. While Rondinella is rarely bottled as a single varietal, it contributes colour, body, and herbal nuances to blends. The grape’s flavour profile is typically subtle, with red cherry, wild berry, and gentle floral notes, occasionally accented by hints of dried herbs or almond.

Plantings are concentrated in the Veneto, though small experimental vineyards exist in Switzerland, Australia, and parts of South America. In dry table wines, Rondinella offers light to medium body with fresh acidity, while in Amarone and Recioto it supports richer, more concentrated flavours of dark fruit and spice. Its role is less about dominance and more about balance, stability, and adaptability in Veneto’s celebrated red wine styles.

Corvinone is a red grape variety native to the Veneto region of northeastern Italy, where it plays an important role in the production of some of the region’s most celebrated wines. Historically mistaken for the more common Corvina, genetic research has confirmed Corvinone as a distinct variety. It is most closely associated with the Valpolicella and Bardolino areas, where it is often blended with Corvina, Rondinella, and other local grapes.

In the vineyard, Corvinone is a late-ripening variety with large, loosely packed bunches and thick-skinned berries, which make it well-suited to the traditional appassimento drying process used in Amarone and Recioto wines. The grape prefers well-drained, hillside sites and benefits from careful yield control, as it can be vigorous.

Plantings are concentrated in Veneto, with small experimental or niche plots found in other Italian regions and in countries such as Australia and the United States, where producers are exploring Italian varietals.

Corvinone wines are known for deep colour, fresh acidity, and aromas of ripe red and black cherries, plums, and subtle floral notes, often with hints of spice and herbs. In blends, it adds richness and structure, producing styles that range from light and fragrant to powerful, full-bodied, and age-worthy.

Corvina is a red grape variety native to Italy’s Veneto region, most famously used in the production of Valpolicella, Amarone, and Recioto wines. It is prized for its bright acidity, moderate tannins, and vibrant red fruit character, often showing notes of sour cherry, plum, herbs, and almond.

Corvina is a late-ripening grape with thick skins, which makes it well-suited to the appassimento process—where grapes are partially dried after harvest to concentrate sugars and flavours. This technique is essential in producing the powerful and age-worthy Amarone and the sweet, luscious Recioto della Valpolicella. In fresh styles like Valpolicella Classico, Corvina contributes brightness, freshness, and aromatic lift.

Corvina is typically blended with other regional varieties such as Rondinella and Molinara, though single-varietal examples are increasingly common. It thrives on well-drained hillside vineyards with calcareous or volcanic soils, particularly around Verona.

Outside Italy, Corvina is rarely planted but has small experimental holdings in countries like Australia and the U.S., where producers are exploring its potential in both dry and appassimento-inspired styles.

Rondinella is a red grape variety native to Italy’s Veneto region, best known as a key component in the wines of Valpolicella and Bardolino. Believed to be a natural cross involving Corvina, Rondinella has been cultivated since at least the mid-20th century and is valued more for its reliability than for intense varietal character. The vine is vigorous, resistant to disease, and produces consistently high yields, making it a dependable partner in blends.

Its berries are medium-sized with thick skins, which dry well—an important trait for the appassimento method used in Amarone and Recioto production. While Rondinella is rarely bottled as a single varietal, it contributes colour, body, and herbal nuances to blends. The grape’s flavour profile is typically subtle, with red cherry, wild berry, and gentle floral notes, occasionally accented by hints of dried herbs or almond.

Plantings are concentrated in the Veneto, though small experimental vineyards exist in Switzerland, Australia, and parts of South America. In dry table wines, Rondinella offers light to medium body with fresh acidity, while in Amarone and Recioto it supports richer, more concentrated flavours of dark fruit and spice. Its role is less about dominance and more about balance, stability, and adaptability in Veneto’s celebrated red wine styles.

Corvinone is a red grape variety native to the Veneto region of northeastern Italy, where it plays an important role in the production of some of the region’s most celebrated wines. Historically mistaken for the more common Corvina, genetic research has confirmed Corvinone as a distinct variety. It is most closely associated with the Valpolicella and Bardolino areas, where it is often blended with Corvina, Rondinella, and other local grapes.

In the vineyard, Corvinone is a late-ripening variety with large, loosely packed bunches and thick-skinned berries, which make it well-suited to the traditional appassimento drying process used in Amarone and Recioto wines. The grape prefers well-drained, hillside sites and benefits from careful yield control, as it can be vigorous.

Plantings are concentrated in Veneto, with small experimental or niche plots found in other Italian regions and in countries such as Australia and the United States, where producers are exploring Italian varietals.

Corvinone wines are known for deep colour, fresh acidity, and aromas of ripe red and black cherries, plums, and subtle floral notes, often with hints of spice and herbs. In blends, it adds richness and structure, producing styles that range from light and fragrant to powerful, full-bodied, and age-worthy.

Corvina is a red grape variety native to Italy’s Veneto region, most famously used in the production of Valpolicella, Amarone, and Recioto wines. It is prized for its bright acidity, moderate tannins, and vibrant red fruit character, often showing notes of sour cherry, plum, herbs, and almond.

Corvina is a late-ripening grape with thick skins, which makes it well-suited to the appassimento process—where grapes are partially dried after harvest to concentrate sugars and flavours. This technique is essential in producing the powerful and age-worthy Amarone and the sweet, luscious Recioto della Valpolicella. In fresh styles like Valpolicella Classico, Corvina contributes brightness, freshness, and aromatic lift.

Corvina is typically blended with other regional varieties such as Rondinella and Molinara, though single-varietal examples are increasingly common. It thrives on well-drained hillside vineyards with calcareous or volcanic soils, particularly around Verona.

Outside Italy, Corvina is rarely planted but has small experimental holdings in countries like Australia and the U.S., where producers are exploring its potential in both dry and appassimento-inspired styles.

Rondinella is a red grape variety native to Italy’s Veneto region, best known as a key component in the wines of Valpolicella and Bardolino. Believed to be a natural cross involving Corvina, Rondinella has been cultivated since at least the mid-20th century and is valued more for its reliability than for intense varietal character. The vine is vigorous, resistant to disease, and produces consistently high yields, making it a dependable partner in blends.

Its berries are medium-sized with thick skins, which dry well—an important trait for the appassimento method used in Amarone and Recioto production. While Rondinella is rarely bottled as a single varietal, it contributes colour, body, and herbal nuances to blends. The grape’s flavour profile is typically subtle, with red cherry, wild berry, and gentle floral notes, occasionally accented by hints of dried herbs or almond.

Plantings are concentrated in the Veneto, though small experimental vineyards exist in Switzerland, Australia, and parts of South America. In dry table wines, Rondinella offers light to medium body with fresh acidity, while in Amarone and Recioto it supports richer, more concentrated flavours of dark fruit and spice. Its role is less about dominance and more about balance, stability, and adaptability in Veneto’s celebrated red wine styles.

Corvinone is a red grape variety native to the Veneto region of northeastern Italy, where it plays an important role in the production of some of the region’s most celebrated wines. Historically mistaken for the more common Corvina, genetic research has confirmed Corvinone as a distinct variety. It is most closely associated with the Valpolicella and Bardolino areas, where it is often blended with Corvina, Rondinella, and other local grapes.

In the vineyard, Corvinone is a late-ripening variety with large, loosely packed bunches and thick-skinned berries, which make it well-suited to the traditional appassimento drying process used in Amarone and Recioto wines. The grape prefers well-drained, hillside sites and benefits from careful yield control, as it can be vigorous.

Plantings are concentrated in Veneto, with small experimental or niche plots found in other Italian regions and in countries such as Australia and the United States, where producers are exploring Italian varietals.

Corvinone wines are known for deep colour, fresh acidity, and aromas of ripe red and black cherries, plums, and subtle floral notes, often with hints of spice and herbs. In blends, it adds richness and structure, producing styles that range from light and fragrant to powerful, full-bodied, and age-worthy.