AMARONE DELLA VALPOLICELLA 2003

VINTAGE: 2003
BOTTLE: 75 cl
ALCOHOL / VOL: 15,15 %
TOTAL ACIDITY: 5.45 g/l
RESIDUAL SUGAR: 9.6 g/l
NET DRY EXTRACT: 37.1 g/l

GRAPES: Amarone Trabucchi is produced with 70% indigenous Corvina Veronese and Corvinone grape varieties that give the wine a ruby-red, almost garnet, colour, and a full bodied structure and rich flavour, with fresh and delicate aromas. The carefully matured Corvinone makes the wine richer, more velvety and intensely fruity. Other noteworthy indigenous vines are Rondinella, reminiscent of cherries, Oseleta, which is freshly acidic and has a good tannin content, Croatina with its ruby-red colour and the slightly aromatic Dindarella.

MAIN GROWING AREAS: Fondo Cereolo, Monte Tenda, Castello. The altitude varies from 140 to 290 metres above sea level.

CULTIVATION METHOD: Veronese pergola and espalier-guyot. Production: approx 5 tonnes per hectare.

HARVEST: from the second week of September with selection of the best grapes.

PARTIAL DRYING: from September to January with an average weight loss of 50-55% in humidity-controlled lofts where the grapes are laid out on bamboo-lined racks.

PRESSING AND FERMENTATION: the grapes are pressed at the beginning of January. The grapes are pressed and de-stemmed in the wine-press. After 24-36 hours of cold maceration, temperature-controlled fermentation, using selected yeasts, takes place in steel vats for a period of approximately 30 days, allowing the extraction of colouring substances, tannins and the aromatic components from the grape skins. The wine is drawn off and then transferred to temperature-controlled tanks where malolactic fermentation ensues.

WINEMAKING AND AGEING: the larger lees are removed from the wine which is then transferred to new barriques for at least 24 months: the French oak (from the forests of Allier, Nièvre, Limousin) refines the structure and aromas. At the end of this phase, the wine is fined and filtered and is then ready for bottling.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE WINE: in the glass it is an intense ruby-red, verging on deep purple. It has a broad and full nose with distinct aromas that range from floral to small forest fruits, with hints of well-balanced spiciness and vanilla. It is rounded, full and persistent on the palate, with soft tannins offsetting a pleasant, fresh acidity. Lingering finale.