The beginning of February I had to opportunity to attend VINO 2017 in New York City. It was a trade tasting of over 600 wines from Italy. Tough job, but someone has to do it :) When you walk into a trade tasting like this you have to have a mission. You can’t just go table to table tasting a boatload of wines because after a while they will all begin to taste the same and your palate will be shot. I decided that I will focus on the white wines of Italy other than Pinot Grigio. (Look for that post coming soon.) I entered the tasting floor and hopped on Facebook Live and over to a table featuring Domini Veneti wines located in the Valpolicella region of Italy and guess what, all he had were red wines. Not just red, but Amarone so I went with the flow and below is the interview. You have to listen because the room was loud and he spoke softly.
Tasting Notes:
Valpolicella DOC Classico Superiore Verjago is a Super Valpolicella made with 40% Corvina, 15% Corvinone, 25% Rondinella, 15% Croatina and 5% Oseleta. After harvest the grapes spent 40 days in the Appassimento method where the grapes dry on bamboo racks to concentrate the sugars and flavors then 3 years in Slavonian oak barrels. Beautiful aromas escape from the glass of red fruit with spice dancing around. Soft and elegant on the palate.
Valpolicella Ripasso DOC Classico Superiore La Casetta - This is the first of their wines I tasted. It’s a blend of 65% Corvina, 15% Corvinone, 10% Rondinella and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. Beautiful dark red in color with some hints of violet hues this is a full bodied wine screaming with red and black berries and hints of spices.
Amarone Della Valpolicella DOCG Classico is a blend of 60% Corvina, 15% Corvinone, 15% Rondinella and 10% of other varieties native to the region. Dense red with brickish hues illuminate from the glass, full bodied with mature red fruit, hints of raisins and spices. This is well balanced, soft and smooth on the palate.
