Amarone della Valpolicella

#docg #red #passito #dry #veneto #corvina #corvinone #rondinella

Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG is a dry raisin red wine produced in the Valpolicella area, in the province of Verona, in Veneto, with a combination of Corvina, Corvinone and Rondinella. The name comes from the word “amaro” (“bitter” in Italian), used to distinguish it from the sweet wine Recioto della Valpolicella DOCG, whose is derivate. It is in fact a wine similar for type of grape and production technique, but it is dry, i.e. without residual sugar.

It is produced exclusively with selected and dried grapes on special racks, so that, under certain conditions of temperature, humidity and ventilation, they lose about half of their weight, thus favoring the concentration of sugars. The drying operation, which lasts about 3-4 months, is delicate and must be checked daily, in order to identify and eventually remove unhealthy berries. Only after complete drying of the grapes, it is possible proceeding with the vinification and the aging, for minimum 2 years in wood barrels, 4 years in case of Riserva version.

The production area of Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG covers a vast hilly area in the north of Verona, characterized by a vary particular orography, with the shape of a comb. In fact the hills and the valleys alternate in east-west direction, sloping to south towards the Po Valley and turning to north into Lessini mountains. This particular shape allows the vineyards, distributed between 100 and 500 meters above the see level, to benefit from both the typical temperated climate of the plain and the prealpine climate- On the west side, in the so-called classical zone, the presence of the Garda lake further influences the climate, making the summer more ventilated and the winters less rigid.

The production protocol has identified two sub-zones within the designation, each with specific characteristics, allowing to report this specification also on the label:

Classico if produced in the historical area called Valpolicella Classica, in the western part of the denomination: it correspond to the municipalities of Fumane, Negrar, Marano di Valpolicella, San Pietro in Cariano, Sant'Ambrogio di Valpolicella.
Valpantena if produced in the Valpantena valley, stuck between the Valpolicella Classica and the eastern Valpolicella.

Similar wines

Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG is a dry passito wine, i.e. without residual sugar. A wine in some ways similar, vinified after the drying of the grapes, is Sforzato di Valtellina DOCG, produced in Lombardy with Nebbiolo grapes.

Tasting

It has a strong personality and can easily forgotten in the cellar. In some cases, it can exceed 20 years of conservation. The color is intense ruby red tending to garnet red with aging. The scent is intense and complex, with notes of violet, plum and blueberry; with aging there emerge notes of chocolate, dried fruit, tobacco, spices, thanks also to the noble molds created during drying process. The flavor is intense, very soft, full-bodied and very warm.

Food pairing

Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG is a foo-bodied, soft and warm wine that is well suited to the rich and filling meat-based dishes, or alone as a meditation wine. It pairs very well with the traditional local dishes, among which is worth mentioning the Risotto all'Amarone, Pasta e fasoi (a soup made of pasta and beans), Pappardelle ai fegatini (pappardelle with livers), Pastissàda de cavàl (horse stew) and the aged cheese Asiago.