Quintarelli Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva 2015

97+ points - Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, December 2024 Made primarily with a blend of Corvina, Corvinone and Rondinella, the Quintarelli Giuseppe 2015 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva has been in bottle since November 2023 (and was released at the end of 2024). This is a wine of impact and intensity, with the textural heft and richness to match. This warm and sunny vintage delivers aromas of dried plum, sweet cigar, spice and brandied cherry. In terms of structure, the wine remains quite firm and compact, and this bodes especially well for its future bottle evolution. The alcohol content is recorded at 16.5%, and the 2015 vintage carries three to four grams per liter of residual sugar that adds a lasting sense of volume and depth to the finish. I always try to schedule my tasting trips to Valpolicella during appassimento, or when harvested fruit is left to air-dry in specially ventilated hangars. The fruit loses much of its water mass during the process, thus increasing flavors, concentration and alcohol. Of the many estates I regularly visit, Giuseppe Quintarelli is among my favorites because of the traditional approach taken. There is one hangar dedicated to grapes drying in plastic crates, and on the other side of the winery, there is a second hangar with grapes carefully laid out on bamboo racks. You also see the celebrated trecce, or "braids," of grapes hung from a ceiling rafter. Each braid weighs 30 kilograms. It is such a beautiful site. While visiting the Giuseppe Quintarelli winery with its cramped spaces and dark corners, I tasted with grandsons Lorenzo and Francesco in the very same tasting room I first visited 20 years ago with the master himself. Carved oak botte stand outside the tasting room. One shows an enormous peacock, a symbol of purity, and around it are symbols of the family and their vineyards. The Giuseppe Quintarelli estate counts 11 hectares of vines on limestone and basalt soils. Annual production is 60,000 bottles. Only estate fruit is used, although extra fruit is purchased in some years if there is an emergency such as significant hail. - Monica Larner