Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG Classico 2012
James Suckling 98Wine Enthusiast 95
Wine Description
Bertani's Amarone della Valpolicella Classico is one of the reference bottles of the appellation, made in the same patient way for generations. The fruit is Corvina Veronese 80% and Rondinella 20% from Tenuta Novare in Arbizzano di Negrar; the bunches dry in the estate lofts for around 78 days, then ferment slowly in concrete for some 45 days, and the wine ages seven years in Slavonian oak casks of 50 to 100 hectolitres before a final rest in bottle. It belongs to the dry, savoury school of Amarone: morello cherry, plum and dried cherry over tea leaf, licorice and soft spice, with firm acidity and fine tannins in place of sheer weight. The 2012 drinks well today and will hold for many years; decant about an hour and serve at 16 to 18 °C with braised beef cheeks, roast duck or a rich bigoli with meat ragù, keeping a last glass for aged Monte Veronese at the end of the meal.
Winery
Bertani was founded in 1857 and stands among the oldest names in Verona wine. Its home is Tenuta Novare in Arbizzano di Negrar, an estate of vineyards, olive groves and deep cellars in the heart of the Valpolicella Classica, with further vineyards in the Valpantena valley northeast of the city. The house style has never chased fashion: patient fermentations, long aging in large Slavonian oak casks and wines that stay dry and fresh, built on Corvina Veronese. Its Amarone Classico, released only after years in cask and bottle, remains a reference point for the whole appellation.
