Villa Rizzardi - Amarone Classico della Valpolicella DOCG 2010

Villa Rizzardi - Amarone Classico della Valpolicella DOCG 2010 (91 TSW)

My tasting notes:

In the glass a deep ruby red color.
On the medium+ nose delicate aromas of dark ripe cherries, dried fruit, liquorice, smoky earth and chocolate.
On the palate medium+ bodied, soft and round with velvet mouthfeel showing medium acidity and tannins. Flavours of dark dried fruit, spices, cigar box and chocolate. Nice long and lingering finish.

I recommend it to be decanted and served (16°C or 60°F) with roasted or braised meat, game dishes such as venison, curry based dishes or with hard, mature cheeses such as Pecorino di Pienza.

The history of this winery started in 1649 when Carlo Rizzardi from Toscolano Maderno arrived in Valpolicella and bought the property of Pojega with the nearby vineyards of Calcarole and the estate of Rovereti. In 1783 Antonio Rizzardi created the garden of Pojega, still famous in the world and later restored Villa Rizzardi in the 1850’s.

In 1913 Carlo Rizzardi married Giuseppina Guerrieri of Bardolino and the labels of the Guerrieri and the Rizzardi Wines were joined and from then on sold under a unique name: Guerrieri Rizzardi (first label 1914). The vineyards (25 hectares or 62 acres) and wine cellars are located in Negrar, one of the 5 municipalities of the Valpolicella DOC Classico zone. Only 5 of the 19 municipalities are denominated as Classico. Only red grape varietals are planted at our Valpolicella estate and these are: Corvina and Corvinone (60%), Rondinella, Barbera and Merlot. The vineyards are on an altitude of between 190 and 300 meters above sea level and are planted on hillsides. The soil is predominantly clay with a high presence of chalk.

The vines, divided in 22 vineyard sites with vine age up to 40 years. The density of vines planted per hectare ranges between 1,600 and 5,000 vines per hectare. They own three ‘crus’ or recognized single vineyard sites in Valpolicella: Rovereti, Pojega and Calcarole.