ThelastofVenice’sgoldbeaterscreatesgold-leafwine
labelsthatarebakedontobottlesinMurano’sglass-
firingovens.It’sa localtraditionthat,likewinemaking,
hadalmostdisappeared.
TheBisolfamilyworkswithTuscanwineconsultant
RobertoCipresso,anexpertinviticulturalhistory.
“Wemakethiswhitewinejustlikea long-lastingred,
withlotsofskincontact,”saysMatteo.“It’stheway
Venetianshavealwaysdoneit,sotheycouldpreserve
thewinewithoutrefrigerationorundergroundcellars.
It’sveryfreshandacidic,yethasa uniquebittersweet,
saltycharacterthatspeaksofthisplace.”
Theyalsoproducea RossoVenissaredwinefrom
a blendofmerlotandcarménèregrapesgrownina
50-year-old vineyard rented from the Swarovski family
ontheirnearbyprivate
island,SantaCristina.And
Matteohasevencreated
thedeliciousVenusabeer,
fragrantwithlagoonherbs.
Thenextdaywe
explorethelagoonon
anoldbragozzowitha fishermanwhoshowsushow
heharvestsmoeche,orsoft-shellcrabs.Wecould
havealsotakena gondolaclasswithBurano’srowing
cluborlearnedhowtomakeessibiscottiwiththe
localladies,if there’dbeentime.
Thatnightwefeastonrosemarytagliatellewitha
ragùoflocalduck,guineafowlandquailonthepatio
oftheosteria.Andlater,wefallasleepona sublime
PieroLissoni-designedbedinourspacioussuite.
Thenextmorningweenjoyexcellentcoffeeandthe
kitchen’sfreshlybakedbreadswithhouse-madejam.
“Wewantourgueststoexperiencewhatweliketo
doourselves,sowecreatedactivitiesthatarenotreally
availabletotourists...mostarethroughourpersonal
relationships,”saysMatteo.“I thinktherighttype
oftourismis wheretravellersexperience‘truethings’
thatkeepthetraditionsofVenicealive.It’simportant
tohavetherightbalancebetweenvisitorsandthe
localcommunity.”Venissahascertainlyfoundit.
Venissa,Fondamenta Santa Caterina 3, Venice,
Italy, venissa.it●“We’reItalianso
wecouldnever
survivewithout
our local wine.”Getting
there
Venissais a
35-minuteride
bywatertaxi
fromMarcoPolo
Airport in Venice.GOURMET TRAVELLER 147