#Chianti red wine full

#Chianti red wine full

The tannins are full but softer than other Italian reds, supporting the concentrated flavours. On the nose there can be surprising violet or floral notes but on the palate expect more prune, black-forest gateaux and cigar box flavours. With its ripe, rich fruit flavours, full, velvety body and high alcohol, this distinctive dry Italian red is a real treat for lovers of powerful, intensely-flavoured wines. It goes some way to explain the name – amaro means 'bitter' in Italian, so this was the 'great bitter wine' which compared to the sweet Recioto, it would have been! What does Amarone taste like? It is suspected that Amarone was an accidental discovery – a winemaker having perhaps forgotten about a barrel of Recioto in the cellar that then continued to ferment, the sugars creating a drier but very rich red wine. Amarone must also be aged for a minimum of two years before release, often in old oak, adding to its complexity.Īmarone della Valpolicella, to give it its full name, has only been a named style of wine since the 1930s however the region has made Recioto (fully sweet red wine) for a very long time a style much prized in Roman society. These raisined grapes are then fermented creating a fuller wine, with richer, sweeter flavours than you would find in a straight Valpolicella.

This reduces the water content and concentrates the flavours and sugars in the grape. This is done by partially drying the grapes in a process known as appassimento. Hailing from Veneto in the north-east of Italy and the sub-region of Valpolicella, where cooler weather meant winemakers of this often light red wine looked for ways of strengthening it, to create a more full-bodied wine. Of the three, this is Italy's most flamboyant and often richest red, with 14% minimum alcohol, and most sitting at 15, or 15.5%. A is for Amarone Introduction to Amarone:Īllegrini’s Valpolicella vineyard where Amarone grapes are grown