Friday, June 18, 2010

A new Valpo.

I'm on a Valpolicella kick. And I really liked this one. It's the first time I've had or seen this producer, but I'm really glad I found it.

David Sterza, Classico Superiore Ripasso, 2007.

Compared to regular Classico Valpo, this wine is a full, deep crimson color and it has pronounced raisin character which comes from, of course, the Ripasso method, where the wine is refermented ("passed over" so to speak) on the skins of grapes pressed for Amarone. This brings up the alcohol a bit and also gives it a noticeable sweet, raisined character with some bittersweet chocolate on the finish. There's also some noticeable volatile acidity on the nose, but you know, VA is a relative flaw. In this case it actually adds a little aromatic lift, and is typical of the region of production.

You can find it around for about $20, and it blows the socks off a lot of other wines at that price point.

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