Introducing appassimento wines from Veneto

In Bepi Quintarelli’s winery, the old bottles are stored traditionally, wrapped in newspaper. From this collection, the estate is now releasing the 2012 vintage. Lively and pale ruby in colour, this is focused on bright, fresh black cherry embellished with raspberry and bay leaf, then coffee granules and a hint of curry powder. Dry and full, the palate expresses great balance due to the brilliant acidity, with ample velvety tannins. An extremely opulent wine of great tension, which will age for decades.

Monte del Frà has a history dating back to 1492, and produces this wine in the Classico area next to Fumane and Marano. Vineyards are located at between 300m-400m on clay and tufa soils, and trained on the traditional pergola system. Grapes are dried naturally for four months, giving the wine plum, spice and intense summer-fruit pudding scents. Flavours of Morello cherries are followed by hints of mocha and balsam. Great texture and round, tannic structure.

Hand-graded grapes (80% Corvina, 10% Rondinella, 10% Oseleta and Croatina) were left to dry for around four months, then fermented 15-20 days on the skins, the wine maturing for at least four years in large oak vessels before another year of ageing in bottle. Dense ruby in colour, this shows an impressively defined sense of terroir with its bright red-cherry fruit and black pepper – typical of Sant’Ambrogio Valpolicella – then the depth of dark chocolate, dried prunes and figs. Creaminess prevails on the off-dry (6g/L) palate, with elegant velvety tannins, refreshing high acidity and the final grip possibly from the Oseleta. A top example from the Classico area, this is a great example to pair with boiled meats and Italian mustard.

La Fabriseria is from an outstanding vineyard located at 400m on limestone soil between Sant’Ambrogio and Fumane. Based on 40% each of Corvina and Corvinone, with 15% Rondinella and 5% Oseleta, this concentrated wine features lush dark cherry fruit and chocolate in a Port-like style, with balsamic notes and a sweet tobacco finish. Full on the palate, it is velvety and refined, off-dry in style (6.5g/L), with an opulent 17% alcohol balanced by crisp acidity. Hedonistic.

Despite a cool, rainy spring, the 2016 vintage is one of the best in recent years due to a warm summer that never exceeded 35°C. Full of dark-fruit intensity – plum and cassis – the wine is layered with dark chocolate, black liquorice and a toasty finish with cherry notes. Velvety and extracted, it’s thick on the palate due to its youthful character. Great potential to age, with a superb natural acidity from the higher vineyard of the estate above Villa della Torre, balancing its richness of fruit and full body.

The Campedelli family owns Marion, a fairly small producer with a clear vision. Its rich limestone vineyards planted to Corvina and Corvinone are situated in the valley of Marcellise, just outside the Classico zone. This is a meaty and savoury style showcasing intense fruits and spicy notes, along with plenty of dried cherries and plums on the palate, accompanied by a smoky note with hints of dry mint and wild herbs. Stunning vibrant fruits and round tannins.

The Valpantena co-op is one of the region’s leading producers of great-value DOC Valpolicella Ripasso. The combination of freshness with a hint of sweetness to the ripe red-fruit and black-cherry flavours makes this an ideal match for grilled steak and game dishes. The lift of spice and subtle oak also make it a fine accompaniment for aged hard cheeses such as Pecorino and Parmigiano.

Ripasso doesn’t get much better than this highly polished example. Here, Valpolicella Classico is re-fermented on the lees of recioto (rather than Amarone) and the extra sweetness and softness which that brings to the finished wine really suits the ripasso style. It has sweet and sumptuous fruit with a velvety texture and ripe, round tannins. Extremely persuasive and already drinking well.

Based in Mezzane with 28ha of vineyards, Massimago (derived from the Latin for ‘extreme well-being’) dates back to 1883. It is now led by a new generation, namely Camilla Rossi Chauvenet. With vineyards up to 350m, the producer makes wines with a fresh, vibrant core. This example is complex and savoury, with a nose of cherry jam, raspberry and plum coulis intertwined with wild summer fruit. Velvety and soft on the palate, long and moreish.

Cesari has been a well-known name in Valpolicella since since the early 1990s. The Bosan vineyard is situated in Corrubbio di Negarine, where the soil is rich in clay and silt, producing the best, most charming amarone. And it’s here that the best dried grapes are used to make this stunning ripasso. In the glass, the wine exhibits all the aromatic charm of the 2016 vintage. On the palate, it opens up to sweet tobacco, dry raisins and sweet vanilla, hinting at Christmas pudding. Velvety and long.

Herby cherry scents lead to a textural, ripe, almost sweet palate full of vanilla-infused wood, earthy black cherry, fragrant wild strawberry, fleshy mulberry and some menthol. It’s a touch warming, but a great example of the ripasso style. Liquorice and chocolate notes accompanied by a fine line of acidity and salinity on the long finish.

Recioto is the sweet wine of Valpolicella. Hand picked grapes are dried for 120 days to concentrate the flavours and sugars, and fermentation is stopped early to leave 130 grams per litre of residual sugar. The result is a wine with a beautifully fragrant nose of smashed strawberry, with abundant prune and violet notes. It has a sweet palate of macerated red fruit and subtle spice, with a long finish of black pepper and strawberry jam. There is enough acidity to freshen the palate after every sip, counteracting the sugar content and making it a perfect match for chocolate and cherry based desserts.

From a high-elevation vineyard, the grapes are dried on bamboo mats to loose 40% of their weight pre-fermentation. Dense fruit, spice, almonds and liquorice; rich but not sweet. Terrific rigour.

The family withdrew their Recioto from the DOC after the 2003 was rejected by the Consorzio tasting panel for insufficient typicity (“it was like a slap in the face to us”); after that, the wine became an IGT named after its leading vineyard. It goes to market in the best years only; 2004 is only the sixth vintage produced.  Is it wine or perfume?  The aromas of this dark passito (dried for four months) leave you wondering: there’s rose, lily and jasmine in here somewhere, as well as milled wheat grains and pounded dark plums.  It’s almost jammy, but there’s nothing that resembles burnt sweetness so in the end you conclude that a purée is a better allusion.  On the palate, there’s sweet enchantment to begin with; the black fruits just tiptoe towards fig, raisin and prune without ever quite losing freshness. Then you notice the dark tannins, waiting like masked dancers in the wings, and the warm resolving acidity, the length, and the dreamy seamless sumptuousness … and then you forget to think at all, and just surrender to its embrace.