Valpolicella Superiore

Wine Name: Valpolicella Superiore.

Grape varieties: Corvina, Corvinone and Rondinella.

City: Cellore, hamlet of Illasi.

Vine density: 13,000 vines per hectare.

Age of the vines:  15 years.

Training system: Guyot

Exposure:  East-west exposure to sunshine; altitude 240 meters above sea level.

Vineyard area: 2.5 hectares.

Type of soil:  Medium texture, presence of skeleton. 

Output: 100 quintals/ha; approx. 800 grams per vine

Bottles produced per year: 15,000-16,000 bottles

Raisin-drying, vinification and fermentation: raisin-drying 30 days; crushing/ destemming, controlled temperature fermentation with inoculation of selected yeasts (saccharomyces cerevisiae)

Refinement:  twelve months in American oak barriques.

Harvest:  October, by hand.

Aging:  six months in the bottle.

Characteristics (color, bouquet, flavor): Strong ruby red color, bouquet of ripe fruit that blends perfectly with vanilla and spices.  The flavor is full, supple and persistent.  A wine of stature with superb clarity.

Alcohol content: 15°

Dining combinations: It may be a companion for ‘Risotto all’Amarone’ but is also a pleasing companion for meditation when tasted alone:  Amarone is a wine that is best drunk alone because this is its duty.

Critical briefs taken from the Internet:
Valpolicella Superiore, Carlo Ferragu 2008:
New Vintage –  “An incredible wine”,
Jamie Goode
Points: 95/100