The Walled Vineyard of Mazzorbo

On Mazzorbo, the small island joined to Burano by a wooden bridge, a medieval wall encloses a vineyard of Dorona, the native grape of the lagoon. This golden grape was the wine of the Venetian doges; the acqua alta of 1966 nearly wiped it out, and the few surviving vines were rediscovered and replanted here by the Bisol family.

A guide walks you through the vineyard and the orchards of Venissa, with the bell tower of Burano on one side and the lagoon on the other, and explains how wine is made on an island where the sea comes in with every tide. The visit ends with a tasting of two of the estate's white wines.

A natural complement to a day on the northern lagoon, with Burano and Torcello; Venissa also offers rooms and a restaurant devoted to the cooking of the lagoon.