Amarone is one of the great wines from
Veneto, a wine region in northern Italy. We know this region well because it
produces Soave and Prosecco, respectively a white dry wine and a sparkling
wine.
What’s famous about Amarone is its curious
vinification process, that basically consists in producing a sweet straw wine
and then forgetting about it until it’s not sweet anymore.
What is Amarone made of?
As it happened with Soave, there isn’t
any “amarone” grape variety: it is a blend of local indigenous varieties. Amarone
is mainly made of Corvina Veronese (which is also called simply “Corvina” or
“Cruina”), which must be the main percentage of the blend, with a share
included between 45% and 95%. The second
variety is Corvinone, another autochthonous grape variety from Verona, that can
replace Corvina for not more than the 50%. Finally a percentage of Rondinella
is also allowed between 5% and 30%. Useless to say, Rondinella is another local
autochthonous variety.
Where is Amarone produced?
Amarone comes from another area close to
Verona, yet different from the one of Soave. Grapes from which it is made are
grown to the north of the town, in a subregion called Valpolicella, which is
enchanting as well.
There actually are different subareas in
the subregion of Valpolicella:
- Valpolicella classica, which is told to
be the most ancient and renowned one, in the municipalities of Fumane, Negrar, Marano di Valpolicella, San
Pietro in Cariano, Sant'Ambrogio di Valpolicella;
- Val d'Illasi;
- Val di Mezzane;
- Valpantena;
- Val Tramigna;
Valpolicella area stretches from the
Garda lake to the province of Vicenza, to the south of Lessini Mountains.
This gives the area a mild, sunny and
pretty dry climate, especially if compared with the one of other areas of the
same region.
Which are the main Amarone production
guidelines?
Apart from the already mentioned grape
varieties, small amounts of different ones are also allowed, but they all must
be red, non-aromatic varieties traditionally grown in the area. Grape Bunches are
selected for producing Amarone and left to dry on dedicated lattices and
pressed only when the sugars and flavors have concentrated in grapes; this takes
about three-four months and the grapes lose about 40-50% of weight.
Then, fermentation process can start. It
is slow and long lasting, to allow the yeasts transform all the sugars into
alcohol. If no or a little (1.1 gram per liter) sugar is left, Amarone can be
left aging for at least two years, although many producers use to let it age
for a longer time.
What is Recioto della Valpolicella?
As it happened with Recioto di Soave,
which was a sweet wine made from the grape varieties used to make Soave dry
wine, Recioto della Valpolicella is a sweet wine made from the same grapes used
to produce Amarone. Yet, the process went backwards, with Amarone. It is said
that the traditional local wine of Valpolicella was Recioto, the sweet one, but
that one day someone forgot a cask of wine in the cellar, and that when it was
found, a long time had passed, so that all the sugar turned into alcohol. They
decided to taste it anyway, and they found out it was even a better wine, a
“great, bitter one”, that’s what the word “amarone” means.
With which dishes should be paired
Amarone?
Traditionally enjoyed with game, roasted
and grilled meats, casseroles and well matured cheeses and excellent with
hearty dishes. Amarone’s distinctive flavor compliments new and exotic sweet
and sour dishes. It is therefore also perfect with
Asian and middle-eastern dishes. Amarone
is also a wine that could be consumed alone and tasted in tranquility .
Italians have an expression for this kind of wine, it’s “vini da meditazione”:
wines you should stop and meditate on.
Suggested Producers:
·
Cesari
·
Tommasi
·
Zenato
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