Valpolicella
Valpolicella is a blend from northeastern Italy near Verona. One of its key grapes is Corvina, and the remainder of the wine is made up of indigenous varieties including Rondinella, Molinara, Dindarella, Oseleta, Rossignola, Negrara, and Forsellina. Valpolicella Classico is, of course, better than Valpolicella. Amarone is made from Valpolicella grapes that have been turned to raisins.
Valpolicella is good with northern Italian hard cheeses such as Montegrappa and Piave, as well as Gorgonzola, Bosina, and Fontina. Amarone pairs well with Montegrappa and Asiago Vecchio.
Amarone della Valpolicella Tremenel 1997 (Tasted in 2004) Around $40 at Central Market. 14% alcohol. Produced by Villa Erbice in Mezzane, Italy. Aroma of chocolate and raisins. It tastes like raisins, dried fruit, and mint. Smooth and settled-in on the palate. Fruity finish that just melts away.
*Amarone Tremenel with Asiago Vecchio. I bought this sharp, aged cheese at Artisanal and they suggested Amarone with it. Delicious. This cheese is sharp and spicy. I had trouble matching it with other hearty reds such as Nero d'Avola and Primitivo. It went really well with this wine. The hard cheese makes the Amarone feel extra velvety. The thick, full wine takes the edge off the sharp cheese.
Amarone Tremenel with Montegrappa. Very good. I ran out of Amarone, so I didn't take great notes.
Amarone Tremenel with Pecorino Toscano, 1 month. This Pecorino is young and acidic. It doesn't have a huge nutty flavor at this stage. The Pecorino wasn't matching up well with the Sangiovese, so I put it with this and it worked really well. The cheese had enough of a wild, bright, fresh sheep flavor to be the perfect foil for this thick, rich, smooth wine. The wine doesn't overpower the cheese, and the cheese adds a liveliness to the wine.
Amarone, Villabella, Fracastoro Amarone della
Valpolicella Classico 1998 (Tasted in 2004) It is bottled in Calmasino in
Italy by http://www.vignetivillabella.com.
$39.99 at Grapevine. 15% alcohol. This was the cheapest Amarone I had ever seen,
and I heard it was really good from all the employees. The label is really
pretty -- black with a slender white tulip picture that looks like it was taken
at night. I have never had an Amarone, so I am very excited to try this. It is
made in Verona where the other Valpolicellas originate. It is obtained from
partially dried grapes. It is full-bodied, dry, and fruity. It should be left to
breathe. It is supposed to be good with tasty meats and aged cheeses, or alone
as an after-dinner drink. To make this wine, as well as Recioto, grape clusters
are carefully selected and then dried, after the harvest, for a period varying
between 30 and 90 days. Pressing and fermentation occur at times, under
environmental conditions and according to methods that are different from those
of the normal Valpolicella.
In addition, the wines' degree of sweetness can be altered by moving the first
racking forward or back in time. The Amarone is differentiated from the Recioto
by the fact that all of its sugars are transformed into alcohol. That factor,
along with the concentration of the must through the drying of the grapes and
aging in oak casks for at least one year, is responsible for the development of
exclusive characteristics that set this wine apart from all others. I had had it
recommended to me as a lighter wine that might go well with a northern Italian
fresh cheese like Robiola or La Tur. I'm trying it with La Tur. I also think it
will be excellent with something like Vella Dry Jack or Montegrappa.
It smells like a dessert wine, almost like a very light Port. It smells like it is going to be really heavy and thick, but it's not. It is soft, smooth, and tart on the finish. I can't stop drinking it. It has so many dimensions. It is hard to imagine that it is so rich and light at the same time. The smell is soft, floral, ripe, luscious, olives, candy-like, almost like chocolate, but not. It tastes tart, tangy, sweet, like raisins, a little smoky and woody. It has the intensity of a dessert wine (fruit-wise) without being heavy. THe finish is light and dry. Great just to drink.
Amarone, Villabella with Grafton 4 Star Cheddar. This blended really well together, but the cheese overpowered the wine. It worked, but for this price on the wine, I wouldn't lose it to this cheese.
Amarone, Villabella with La Tur. La Tur is a soft sheep/cow/goat blend from northern Italy. It is light, but with a distinct animal aroma. I like this ok. At first, I didn't like it so much with this wine, though it was recommended. Then, after trying all the other cheeses with the wine that ended up not working so great, this one tasted ok. I like the extreme salt in the cheese and the animal flavors along with the richness of the wine. The wine even deals with the mold well, maybe because of the salt. It's very nice. I think this La Tur was the perfect age for this wine. It had gotten so creamy that on the plate, it turned to liquid, yet it had retained a little curd in the center. It was excellent and fluffy, and the light tartness of the wine was nice with it. The wine makes the cheese spicy. It's nice. Surprisingly, the weight of the wine and cheese are good together. It's best with some bread, though, so the mold doesn't interfere too much.
Amarone, Villabella with Taleggio. Interesting at first, but then bitter. I just can't get anything to really go with Taleggio. This gets increasingly more bitter. The wine does bring out a nice, nutty taste in the cheese. I think, with bread, this would be ok. I like the nut and fruit flavors together. I am not wild about the bitterness.
Amarone, Villabella with Valdeon. This is a blue cheese in walnut leaves from Spain. It is super sharp and aged to the point of being almost brown. It smells really strong of walnuts. It is extremely spicy. The wine with it makes it taste like vomit.
Amarone, Villabella with Vella Dry Jack. OK together, but something is burning. This is giving me heartburn. It tastes great at first with the sharp cheese and the heavy fruit, but then it just dwindles off into something boring. I think the finish on this wine is too dry for this cheese. I like this cheese best with something fuller on the finish.
Valpolicella La Francesca 2001 (Tasted in 2004). $5.49 at Grapevine. 12% alcohol. This is not a Classico, so it won't be as fancy as the others, probably. Also, it is very cheap. I wanted to compare this cheap one to the others. The color is dark garnet/amber. It smells raisiny and fruity -- like cherries and flowers. It is a very dry, refreshing wine. I think it's good. I excpected it to be really horrible, especially after looking at the weird drawing of grapes on the label, but it was good. It is acidic with sturdy tannins. I'd like this wine to be a little fruitier. It's still good.
Valpolicella La Francesca with Malga Conciato Barrique. This cow's milk cheese hails from the Veneto region close to where Valpolicella is made. It is rubbed with juice from the native Prosecco grape and herbs. It tastes musky and sweet, almost like a sheep's milk cheese, and it has a minty aroma. This is bad. How disappointing. Bitter, bile, metal -- all my least favorite things.
Valpolicella La Francesca with Piave, aged. Excellent nutty, tangy, cream-flavored cheese from near where Valpolicella is made. Good together. The wine tastes thin with this cheese, though. I lose the fruit with the wine, which was almost non-existent anyhow.
Valpolicella Classico, Allegrini 2002 (Tasted in 2004) $12.97 at Central Market. 12.5% alcohol. Kevin at Central Market said that this would go well with something smoky and peppery. It also might be good with something earthy. It is aged in small oak barrels, so it gets more of an oak flavor than Zenato, which is aged in larger oak barrels. It smells very much like dark cherries and a little smoky. It is dense, though it's supposed to be a lighter, fruitier red. It's also a classico, so better than others. It tastes a little cherry. It is tart and bright, but also woody. The finish is very dry. It's nice, but maybe not as light as I had expected. I was figuring it would be less dense. It is also lightly spicy and tingly. It's very fresh, but also full. I like this a lot, and so did everybody else.
Valpolicella Classico, Allegrini with La Tur. This cheese is soft, animaly, and tangy. It is strong, but very light. It blends well with this cheese, but the wine kills the really good barnyard flavor of the cheese. The wine cancels the cheese out. After I drink wine, all the sudden it is just a mouthful of fruit. There is no bitterness.
*Valpolicella Classico, Allegrini with Montegrappa. This cheese has such a wonderful Northern Italian full cream rustic flavor to it. It is mild, but has a lot of character and has a little bit of that rubber taste going on, that is not bad. This is delicious together. The cheese has a little bit of protein crystals in it. It is a little nutty. The wine just meshes with it and tastes really light compared to it, even though the cheese is pretty light. It brings out so much delicious fruit in the wine without cancelling out the nice, nutty, cream flavor in the cheese. This is excellent and these two seem to be equals in strength. I tried this again later and didn't like it as much, but the cheese was more aged.
Valpolicella Classico, Allegrini with Pecorino with Black Peppercorn. This is a very mild sheep cheese with just a hint of animal and some light peppercorns. The wine overpowers the cheese completely except for where there are peppercorns. It makes the milk flavor completely disappear.
Valpolicella Classico, Zenato, DOC 1998 (Tasted in 2003) Good with cheese! It is dark ruby red and made in the Veneto region. Along with Soave, it's considered a not-so-serious wine because of some non-Classico versions that became popular in the States in the 70's. This wine has a cherry flavor. It would be a good wine for sipping at the end of dinner. Ripe cherries and bitter almonds. It doesn't have much legs. It tastes a little like cherry cough syrup. Very very cherry, spicy, clove taste with a musky, earthy smell. It is like cookies. It also has a cherry aftertaste. The flavor is full, but then disappears quickly. It is a little dry. I like it a lot, but the cherry flavor is overpowering at times. I retasted this in 2004, the 2000 bottle called Superiore and not Classico. Cherry flavor, low tannins, light nuts. Light spice and light wood. At first, it didn't taste so interesting. It seemed really fruity like a Beaujolais, but then all the flavors start to come out. It's very drinkable. It tastes dark. Tart cherries, light wood, and a spicy finish. It's well-balanced and interesting all the way. It does have some bitterness, which I guess is the bitter almonds. When I breathe out, I can almost taste an almond extract. My husband says it has a clean finish, meaning that there is a tang. I got a long, spicy finish. This was really nice, especially for $10. I also tried the 2001. Bright cherries, light, low tannins, mild, tart, smoky, dark fruit. This wine is supposed to be aged in larger casks so that it doesn't pick up as much wood as the Allegrini.
Valpolicella Superiore, Zenato with Montasio. Mild cow's milk cheese from Italy. Tangy. It reminds me of an Italian Cheddar, if there were such a thing. Some bitterness in this pairing. I don't think they do much for each other. It's kind of dull. They don't fight, but it's just dwindles down into nothing.
Valpolicella Superiore, Zenato with Montegrappa. Very good. This cheese is like an almost sheepy-tasting cow's milk cheese. It's softer than a Parmesan, but has some of the same flavors. It is from the Veneto region, as is the wine. I don't like this so much. It's ok, but the cheese is stronger than the wine and takes away some of the nice fruit from the wine. The bitterness comes out, but it's not too bad. I think that this cheese is a little too strong for the wine. Otherwise, it's always worked really well with Montegrappa. I tasted it again once the cheese had really come to room temperature and it was very nice. I still lost some of the fun fruit in the wine, but it is really good together. I like the nutty flavors in the cheese with the wood and cherries. It's really good. It's very Italian countryside. Brad thinks that the wine is earthy tasting and the cheese made it sweeter. The 2001 was not as good with the cheese, but I think it's because the cheese is more aged than when I first tasted it. Still, it's ok. There is bitterness. The cheese is too strong for the wine. It's hard to say. It is not living up to my previous expectations, but after I eat a little more, it starts to grow on me.
Valpolicella Superiore, Zenato with Ricotta Salata. Very nice together, but the wine overpowers the cheese. I get some burning, I guess from the spicy taste in the wine. It's ok. It's something I would like to snack on, but wouldn't necessarily put them in a pairing. The cheese is nice and salty, and the wine has such a nice, tart cherry taste. It's very pleasant and I can't quit eating it. I love this moist, spongy texture with the wine.
Valpolicella Zenato 2001 Very light and silky wine. Fresh cherry and other berries, and some pleasant bitterness on the finish.
Valpolicella Zenato 2001 with young Mitica Pecorino Toscano. This was absolutely disgusting. I really thought the young, fresh Pecorino Toscano would work nicely with the fresh berry flavors and weight of the wine, but it was horrible together. It made me make faces for about 5 minutes before I could even speak. It was metallic, dirty, and puckering.
Valpolicella Zenato 2001 with Pantaleo. Sardinian goat's milk cheese. I tried this together because the cheese was more aged (it says about 30 days, but I think it's more like 5 months) and it was much better, but still a bit metallic.
Valpolicella Zenato, 2003 with Piave. Good, but a little too earthy.
Valpolicella Zenato, 2003 with Castelmagno. Awful! Just say no!!! I can't get the bad taste out of my mouth.
Valpolicella Zenato 2003 with Castelbelbo. Earthy, brie type of cheese. This was not the worst I've ever had, but definitely not good at all. The cheese was too mushroomy and earthy. This wine wants a hard, salty cow's milk cheese.
Valpolicella, Tommasi, 1999 (Tasted in 2003) $15. Medium heavy. It is made in the Veneto region from Corvina, Molinara, rondinella, and sixteen field varieties. It is like a baby Amarone. I liked this wine a lot, but didn't take a lot of notes on it.
Valpolicella, Tommasi with Morbier. Not good.
Valpolicella with Mimolette. The Mimolette is completely lost with this wine.
Valpolicella with Maytag. I liked this combo. There was some light bitterness, but the cheese doesn't disappear. Spicy, creamy cheese. There is a nice bite in the cheese. The wine is thick. I don't lose the vomity blue aftertaste, luckily.
Valpolicella Ripassa Superiore, Zenato 2001 (Tasted in 2004) $21.25 at Austin Wine Merchant. 13.5% alcohol. I bought this because it was supposed to be in between a Valpolicella and Amarone. This wine is extremely dense with a light purple amber rim. This smells so strong and raisiny. It smells like it's really high alcohol, but it isn't. it smells really sweet and fruity. It makes me think that it's going to be like a Port. It tastes like licorice. It is a little bitter and is like drinking raisins. It's on the verge of being a dessert wine. It has that dark cherry flavor. The tannins are soft, but there is a dry finish. It is a very rich wine. This is from Verona in Italy. It is supposed to be in between Valpolicella and Amarone. I forgot what all they told me, but I think they said that it is fermented on top of Amarone grapes. 80% Corvina Veronese, 10% Rondinella, 5% Molinara & 5% Sangiovese. From the Eurowines website: A close relation to Amarone, Ripassa takes its name from the ancient process of Ripasso, literally meaning repassed. After the Valpolicella is fermented, it is put into vessels recently vacated by the Amarone. The wine soaked skins and lees that remain in these vessels initiate a slight refermentation, subsequently increasing both the alcohol and body of the wine. Once passed through the skins and lees, the wine remains in the tank for 6 months and is then aged in small oak barrels for 18-24 months. It is supposed to have a deep ruby-red color, with an intense, persistent bouquet. It is a full bodied, harmonic and velvety smooth. This is supposed to be like a mini-Amarone. Ripe, bitter-sweet fruit and soft tannins. I read at http://www.thewinedoctor.com that this is (sic) "A deep, brooding red-purple hue. On the nose there are smoke-tinged fruits, with nuances of liquorice and cough candy. A delicious presence on the palate, with a fresh, balanced entry overtaken by the rich, full yet smooth texture derived from the ripasso process. Packed with ripe, bitter-sweet fruit, and some soft tannins. Delicious drinking, punching some way above it's weight - a real mini-Amarone."
Valpolicella Ripassa Superiore, Zenato with La Tur. This cheese is excellent. It's animaly and creamy. It goes ok with this wine. I like the sweetness with the thick wine. It's surprisingly good. The cheese finish (goats, sheep and stank) lasts through the wine. It's nice together. It's a little like a Port/Stilton pairing, but with a milder cheese. I guess the wine overpowers a little, but I don't think it's bad. I like the thick fruity wine with the intense animal taste in the fresh cheese.
*Valpolicella Ripassa Superiore, Zenato with Montegrappa. Oooh, this is excellent together! The wine brings out the nuts in the cheese. The fruit is so thick and smooth in the wine, and the cheese is so dense and nutty. I like the cheese towards the inside of the wheel.
Valpolicella Valpantena, Secco-Bertani Ripasso 2001 (Tasted in 2004) $11.99 at Austin Wine Merchant. Dal 1857. 13% alcohol. From Verona, Italy. It is supposed to be a deep, red color with a delicate bouquet with notes of herbs and walnuts. It has a berry flavor, is dry, full, pleasantly bitter, and lingering.
Recioto della Valpolicella by Corte Rugolin, Classico 1997 (Tasted in 2004) $44.79 at Grapevine for a 50 cl bottle. 14% alcohol. This is from Valgatara, Italy, in the Veneto region. http://www.angelini-wine.com. This is 60% Corvina, 25% Rondinella, 5% Molinara, and 10% Old Vines. The grapes are subjected to light drying so that it is like a heavier Amarone. It has a bouquet of irises, violets, wild roses, and cherries. The color is deep brick red. It has an intense flavor of baked plums, caramel and cherries. It is port-like and intense with a balanced sweet finish. It is supposed to be good with Pandoro, shortbread, cookies, and chocolate-based desserts. It is recommended that it be aged 15 years. This one is 7 years old. It is supposed to be served at 60 degrees F. It is light for a dessert wine. It is dark ruby/tawny red, has light legs, and tastes very complex. It doesn't have an overwhelming flavor, but the more you drink it, the more things jump out at you. I taste something tart and sweet, like strawberries, and then a powdery flavor in the finish that reminds me of eating flowers. It also tastes a little smoky and warm. It is very good. It seems to like cheeses.
Recioto della Valpolicella with Fontina Fontal. The Fontina is semi-soft, creamy, and tangy. This is really good together, but the wine overpowers the cheese a little. This is nice, though. The milky flavor of the cheese lasts through the wine.
Recioto della Valpolicella with Gorgonzola Montagna. Gorgonzola is spicy, salty, and creamy. This is good together, too, but the wine really brings out the spice flavor.
Recioto della Valpolicella with Piave. This is delicious together. The cheese is semi-hard and nutty. It reminds me of a light Parmigiano-Reggiano. When I drink the wine with it, the nutty flavor in the cheese jumps out and the sugar is tamed in the wine.
Recioto with Robiola Bosina. This isn't perfect, but it's not awful either. The cheese is soft-ripened and a little fragrant. The white mold in the cheese makes the wine taste a little sharp and spicy, but overall, it blends.