The Piave is a big river which has its spring in the Peralba mountain, beyond the Austrian border. It gives origin to the “Grave”, a land rich in rocks rounded by the action of the floods. The silt from the mountains spreads over the land and gives origin to the fields where the Raboso vines are grown.
Their grapes are used to make Raboso Piave, a rustic and full-bodied wine as dark as ink, suitable to strong palates.
It pricks the veins and is as sharp as the Archangel Michael’s sword.
And above the vineyards the tall mulberries stand out.

Ferruccio Mazzariol, “The Land of Mulberry Trees”

The mulberry, once very common in the Veneto plain especially along the river banks, was often used for silkworm rearing and as a support for the vine.
In the late XIX century the Bellussi family in Tezze di Piave started to grow their vines according to a system known since then as “Bellussi system” or “Bellussera”.
Such system consisted of placing some vines round a central support, often a mulberry, and connecting them to it in a way which reminds of a wheel spokes.
Such system was typical of the Treviso plain for a long time, and it was an interesting subject of study for Italian and European vine growers, especially at the time of the fight against mildew. Nowadays the “Bellussera” is out-of-date, replaced by different growing systems with a higher number of vines per hectare and lower yield; however it cannot be forgotten, as it played such an important role in the story of our area.