Allegrini Winery visit - The Valpolicella area
03-06-2018After visiting the Vinitaly fair and staying with my friend and winemaker Giovanni Ederle in the hills of Verona at a beautiful agriturismo called San Mattia ( a must visit) I took my car to visit the Allegrini winery.
I had an appointment with Francesca Begotti who give me a tour along the vineyards and Villa della Torre where we had a small tasting at the end of the visit.
Villa della Torre is not properly a winery even if, since it has been acquired by Allegrini few years ago, it has become an important hospitality facility of this estate where, together with standard tours, it is also possible to have wine a wine tasting.
Villa della Tore is in Fumane, in the heart of one of the five villages that constitute the territory of Valpolicella Classica, the historic wine producing region of Valpolicella, Amarone and Recioto wines.
The building is all surrounded by vineyards that, even before Allegrini acquisition of the villa, were used by this estate for the production of one of their most appreciated wines.
On our way tot he vineyards Francesca, export manager at Allegrini winery talked about their winery and the history of the Allegrini family. Allegrini is one of the main producer in the Valpolicella appellation and one of the most prominent wine estates in Italy and the rest of the world. The family flocks go far back to the 16th century. Currently Marilisa and Franco Allegrini are in charge and possession. Allegrini has more than 100 hectares of vineyards in the hills of the Classico region. The wines are produced exclusively from grapes from their own vineyards. After years of research and experimentation, Allegrini introduced radical innovations that contributed to the quality of the Valpolicella wines. The possibility of the domain to go along with the trend on the market and the family's desire to achieve the highest quality from the vineyards. It produces soft, sensual wines such as Palazzo della Torre, La Grola, La Poja and Amarone. These wonderful wines are all part of Valpolicella's special history!
La Grola Vineyard
This small vineyard measuring just 2.65 hectares (6.5acres) is the upper parcel of the La Grola vineyard and yields Allegrini’s most exclusive and prestigious cru.
Planted in 1979 according to the same innovations as for La Grola, it was immediately identified by Giovanni Allegrini as the ideal spot for the production of a 100% Corvina cru. While the climatic conditions are the same as those on La Grola, there is a significant difference in the type of terrain. La Poja is a perfectly flat plateaux that dominates the top of the hill. Of Cretaceous origin, it has significant quantities of limestone and is very stony. The surface, being both stony and very poor in top-soil, appears perfectly white and thus reflects the sun’s rays, ensuring that the grapes achieve the best possible degree of sugar concentration and phenolic maturation.
The results are the perfect grapes for the La Poja wines. A full bodied red bursting with perfume, completely dry, lower in alcohol and more precise than Amarone. One of my faves from the Allegrini estate.
Website winery: www.allegrini.it