Amarone

Wine Style:
Amarone is a very special, powerful northern Italian red wine made from shriveled grapes that have dried for several months. In short this is a full-bodied wine weighing in at about 15% or 16% alcohol, and when in best condition, tastes of chocolate, mocha, and dried figs. Suggested food pairings include Steak au Poivre (Pepper Steak) and, especially Italian Parmesan cheese.

Flavors:

Origin:
Veneto (维尼托) in Italy

Found:
Italy only

Amarone della Valpolicella, or Amarone for short, is created in the Venetian region of Italy. Originally there was only one legal region, or DOC, for the Valpolicella name. These wines are made with the Corvina Veronese, Rondinella and Molinara grapes. There are two sub groups of wine styles which are native to Veneto: Recioto, which is a sweet dessert wine, and Amarone, which is a dry red wine with great body.

Both Recioto and Amarone are made with grapes that have been dried on racks, bringing out their flavors. In 1991 these two were granted their own DOCs. The land area encompassed by these three DOCs is the same, but the types of wine are quite different.

Amarone is the fourth biggest seller in Italy, behind Chianti, Asti, and Soave. This fine wine has flavors of licorice, tobacco and fig, and goes well with game and ripe cheese. While some styles of amarone can be very bitter (that’s where the name comes from), new styles like Masi are fruitier.

Amarone can be drunk young, while still a ruby purple, but they also age magnificently to a dark garnet for thirty years or more. A typical drinking age is 10 years. Amarone should be served with food.

Further Reading:
Wikipedia
Wine Intro