# Amarone della Valpolicella (2017)

- **Producer:** Casalforte
- **Colour:** red
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella
- **Region:** Veneto, Italy
- **Style:** Classic
- **Alcohol:** 15.0%
- **Average price:** €30
- **Vegan:** Yes
- **Contains sulphites:** Yes
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 18–20 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** cherry, plum, blackberry, blackcurrant, liquorice, vanilla, cloves, chocolate, cedar, dried fig, prune, leather, tobacco, cinnamon

## About this wine

Casalforte is the flagship premium tier of Cantine Riondo, named as a tribute to the historic farmhouses (casali) on the cooperative growers' estates, celebrating their generational fortitude and spirit. Located north of Verona in the historic hillside Valpolicella zone of Veneto, Italy, the vineyards benefit from calcareous, clay-rich, and partially volcanic soils. This 2017 vintage showcases the resilience of the region's traditional grapes during a hot, dry growing season, yielding a wine of remarkable concentration and character.

## Interesting facts

- The name Casalforte pays tribute to the historic farmhouses ('casali') and the fortitude of the cooperative's generational growers.
- Grapes undergo 'appassimento', drying for 3 months in specialized lofts to concentrate sugars and flavors before fermentation.
- The 2017 vintage was awarded a prestigious Silver Medal at the International Wine Challenge (IWC).

## Food pairing

Amarone's massive structure, high alcohol, and rich, concentrated fruit profile require equally robust, flavorful dishes. Rich, slow-cooked meats, game, and savory stews match the wine's body, while the high acidity cuts through fat. Mature, hard cheeses complement the wine's complex tertiary notes and soften its firm tannins.

## Wine making process

Crafted using the traditional appassimento method. Hand-harvested grapes (Corvina, Corvinone, and Rondinella) are dried in ventilated rooms (fruttai) for approximately three months until January to naturally dehydrate and concentrate sugars. This is followed by a slow fermentation on the skins with continuous pump-overs to maximize color and tannin extraction. The wine is then aged for a minimum of 18 to 24 months in large oak barrels to achieve structural harmony and complexity.