Corte Volponi Amarone Riserva 2015

The winery was set up by the Zenato family who decided to expand their expertise from Lugana in Northern Italy to the neighbouring area of Valpolicella.

The Corte Volponi vineyards are located in Negrar, a small village in the heart of the Valpolicella Classico Region, in the western part of Veneto, between the city of Verona and Garda Lake.

Grapes for this Amarone Riserva are hand-harvested at the end of September. They are air-dried (appassimento) for four months, when water evaporates and flavours become very intense. The half-dried grapes are crushed and fermented at 24-26° in stainless steel tanks. For the first three weeks, the wine is fermented on the skins, absorbing richer flavours and developing a darker colour.

For the next three years the wine matures in wood. 50% of it ages in small (120 litre) French oak barriques, acquiring deep, dark and spicy notes. The other 50% matures in large Slavonian oak casks, helping the wine express the grape’s natural flavour.

This Amarone Riserva offers freshness (thanks to the vineyard’s higher elevation), richness and depth (as the blend is dominated by the dark and tannic Corvinone). In the glass, it opens up with attractive notes of fresh raspberry and wild forest berries – frutti di bosco. It leads towards deep, warm flavours of blackberry preserve and sweet tobacco, with a smoky and spicy finish of black pepper, pine sap and juniper berry.