Valpolicella DOC

DOC area for red wines in the west of the Italian region of Veneto. The zone includes the municipalities of Cazzano di Tramigna, Cerro Veronese, Colognola ai Colli, Dolcè, Fumane, Grezzana, Illasi, Lavagno, Marano di Valpolicella, Mezzane di Sotto, Montecchia di Crosara, Negrar, Pescantina, San Martino Buon Albergo, San Mauro di Saline, San Pietro in Cariano, Sant'Ambrogio di Valpolicella, Tregnago and Verona in the province of Verona. The five municipalities of Fumane, Marano di Valpolicella, Negrar, San Pietro in Cariano and Sant'Ambrogio di Valpolicella form the Valpolicella Classico area with largely terraced sites. The Valpolicella Valpantena subzone comprises a smaller area in the Valpantena valley in a niche of Lake Garda, which is characterised by a special climate. If the grapes come from classified vineyards, the Superiore wines may indicate Vigna followed by the vineyard name. The picture shows a view from the hills of the municipality of Castelrotto (San Pietro in Cariano province of Verona) with vineyards and olive groves of Valpolicella.

Valpolicella

This wine tap is blended from the local varieties Corvina or Cruina = Corvina Veronese (45-95%), Corvinone (max. 50%), Rondinella (5-30%), as well as other permitted varieties (max. 25%). In terms of the grape blend, it is similar to Bardolino, which also comes from the Veneto region. Compared to the other Valpolicella varieties, these are mostly wines for rather quick enjoyment. There are six varieties: Valpolicella, Valpolicella Classico, Valpolicella Valpantena, Valpolicella Superiore, Valpolicella Classico Superiore and Valpolicella Valpantena Superiore.

Valpolicella Ripasso

This special type of wine received DOC classification in 2010. Pomace from Amarone processing is added to the young fermented Valpolicella red wine, thus initiating a second fermentation. This gives the wine the typical bitter taste of an Amarone. This process is called Ripasso. This makes the wine fuller-bodied and more flavourful than the normal Valpolicella. The production quantities are now higher compared to the traditional type. There are the variants Valpolicella Ripasso, Valpolicella Ripasso Valpantena, Valpolicella Ripasso Classico, Valpolicella Ripasso Superiore, Valpolicella Ripasso Valpantena Superiore and Valpolicella Ripasso Classico Superiore.

Amarone della Valpolicella and Recioto della Valpolicella

The dry Amarone della Val policella and the sweet Recioto della Valpolicella are produced from dried and raisined grapes respectively. Both types of wine were upgraded to DOCG in 2010.

Image: By Paolo Villa - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link