Hi, I’m Kim, a passionate lover of wine, food, and any experience that brings the two together! In this weekly blog post, I share my thoughts on a wine that I’ve recently purchased from one of our local independent wine merchants. If you’d like to know more about me, I’ve included a brief bio following the post.
2024 Zeni Vigne Alte Soave Classico
Soave Classico D.O.C
Italian White Wine
Everything Wine
$27.98
Various Locations
This week’s recommendation comes on the heels of Vancouver’s Top Drop Canada, a wine festival celebrating terroir-driven, artisanal wines. Produced by Zeni 1870, the 2024 Vigne Alte Soave Classico comes from the historic Soave Classico zone in Veneto, Northern Italy. The Zeni family has spent more than 150 years crafting
traditional wines around Bardolino and Valpolicella, and their “Vigne Alte” bottling highlights the freshness and mineral character that make Soave Classico one of Italy’s most respected white wine regions.
Made from 85% Garganega, 5% Trebbiano, and 10% Chardonnay, the wine is sourced from hillside vineyards between the towns of Soave and Monteforte d’Alpone. Hand-harvested grapes are softly pressed and aged in stainless steel to preserve purity, freshness, and aromatic precision.
What Makes Soave Classico Special?
Soave Classico differs significantly from the larger Soave DOC designation. While Soave DOC includes flatter, more expansive vineyard areas, Soave Classico refers to a historic hillside zone known for volcanic soils, cooler elevations, and lower-yield vineyards. These conditions produce wines with greater concentration, minerality, freshness, and complexity. The volcanic terroir gives these wines their signature saline edge and subtle almond-like finish.
The 2024 Vigne Alte shows a pale straw colour and opens with aromas of white flowers, elderflower, pear, green apple, and hints of lime zest. On the palate, it is medium-bodied, crisp, and vibrant, balancing bright citrus and orchard fruit with a rounded texture and elegant mineral backbone. Notes of wet stone and bitter almond linger through a long, refreshing finish.
Fresh and versatile, this wine pairs beautifully with seafood, risotto, white meats, fresh cheeses, and light pasta dishes.
Kim Mead is a Vancouver-based wine and food writer. She holds the WSET Level 3 Award in Wines with Merit, the French Wine Scholar designation with Honours, and Italian Wine Essentials certification. She is currently pursuing the Bordeaux Master's program with the Wine Scholar Guild. Kim serves as Cellar Master for the Vancouver chapter of the International Wine and Food Society and is a member of the Commanderie de Bordeaux. Follow her @agalandaglass