The magic of a territory that has been sown, cared for and beloved for centuries by peasants and winemakers that have made this a UNESCO Heritage Site. A one-of-a-kind territory characterised by hills, vineyards on green terraces, rural hamlets, and cultivated lands. Acknowledged in 2019 under the name “The Prosecco Hills of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene”, it was made part of the Worldwide List of Heritage Sites as cultural landscape. A landscape that combines works between humans and nature which express a long and intimate relationship between peoples and their natural environment.
A landscape that has been moulded over centuries.
For hundreds of years, the rough terrain here has been shaped and adapted by distinctive practices of territory use. Among these are the territory and soil conservation techniques that make up the winemaking practices using Glera grapes to produce high-quality prosecco wine. Since late in the 17th century, the use of “ciglioni”, the modelled use of grassy terraces to plant steep terrains, has created a characteristic chess board pattern, with rows that are parallel and vertical to the slopes. In the 19th century, local farmers developed a specific manner of planting grapevines, called “bellussera”, which has contributed to the aesthetic characteristics of the landscape. The mosaic look of the landscape is the result of environmental practices and of historical and current use of the soil. Areas dedicated to grapevines, planted on the “ciglioni”, live side by side with stretches of forest, small groves, hedges, and rows of trees that work as corridors connecting the different habitats. In the highlands, small villages pepper the narrow valleys or perch on the ridges.
