Freddy R. Troya

9.0

Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG 2021
Torre d’Orti – Veneto, Italy 🇮🇹

Overview
A traditional Amarone crafted primarily from Corvina (with Corvinone), Rondinella, and a small percentage of Molinara, produced using the appassimento method (partially dried grapes). 17% ABV. A powerful expression leaning rustic rather than refined in this vintage.

Aromas & Flavors
Dried cherry, baked plum, subtle fig, light cocoa, faint walnut and restrained raisin tones. Tertiary notes present but not deeply layered.

Mouthfeel
Full-bodied and structured with elevated alcohol. Firm tannins and a slightly edgy texture. Lacks the seamless velvety integration expected from more polished Amarone examples.

Food Pairings
Braised meats, aged cheeses, wild boar ragù, mushroom-based dishes.

Verdict
Technically correct and gastronomic, but did not fully deliver the plush refinement and layered complexity often associated with top-tier Amarone. Better at the table than as a contemplative standalone pour.

🍷 Did You Know?
Corvina is the aromatic backbone of Amarone, responsible for cherry and spice notes, while Rondinella contributes color and structure. Balance during drying is crucial, integration is everything. — 4 months ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.6

A blend of 92% Merlot & 8% Cab Franc, elevated to Premier Grand Cru Classé in 2012, deep Ruby with aromas of black fruits, complex spice and notes of forest floor. On the palate flavors blackberry and black cherry with notes of cacao, espresso and licorice. Fine smooth tannins, great mouthfeel, long finish ending with toasty cedar notes and earthy mineral character. Just starting to show beautifully and will for next decade. Nice! — 4 years ago

Elizabeth Vecseri

9.2

Pretty sure this is the one we had paired with the rack of lamb. It was so soft and smooth from the aging in concrete vats. Lightly fruity and not too heavy on the tannins, it elevated the lamb nicely so that the whole course was not heavy. — 4 years ago

Shengli Hu

9.0

For an entry level this is an overachiever. Smoke, cream fraiche, mineral-laced citrus, yellow peach, -ripe apricot-, white pepper, elevated crescendo acidity, grippy texture with the right amount of phenolic bitterness! Intense and focused. Long finish. — 5 years ago

Brett Emerson

9.4

Pair this classically perfect 14-year-old Rioja with cheese and crackers that you share with your beautiful wife, ideally in a hotel room after you’ve been evacuated from your home for a week due to fires caused by lightning storms. Your appreciation will be elevated if you precede your wine with a few days of cooking paella for hundreds of evacuees and firefighters. If this is not a possibility, I suggest pairing your Tondonia with grilled lamb, which will play well with the wine’s tobacco, leather and cranberry notes. — 6 years ago

Shengli Hu

9.4

Violet, crushed stone, mushroom, smoked game, black and green olives, balsamic oils, blackberry, red cherry, dark cherry, elevated acid/tannins and medium body. — 6 years ago

Ananda Aisola

9.1

Body: med light, acid: med high, tannins: high, sugar: dry alcohol: elevated oaky af — 6 years ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

This is so good. Cooking now but more notes soon. It’s got this uncanny elegance on the palate plus this unreal concentration of sweet oak, minerals and fleshy fruit but backed up by ripping acids. Buttery Meursault but elevated beyond. — 5 months ago

Jay Kline

9.3

Popped and poured from a magnum; no formal notes. This is probably the third or fourth time I’ve had the 2014 Caravina and while it’s still quite primary, this is the best showing yet. Bright red and black fruits with tobacco, a whiff of bell pepper and some baking spices. Firm structure with grippy tannins. The acid is elevated but welcome, particularly since it helped to slice through the fat of the prime rib. Finish is long and satisfying. Drink now and through 2034. — 4 years ago

Shengli Hu

8.9

Tobacco, pyrazene, oak, graphite, blackcurrant, tart red and black fruits, pencil shaving. High acidity, elevated integrated tannins, medium body. Juicy fruit on mid palate. So I called it St Emilion…. 46% Cabernet Sauv, 36% Merlot, ?? Petit Verdot, … — 4 years ago

Matt

9.5

Brightly fruited, firm tannin, moving towards tertiary with plenty of life left in the fruit. Roasted red plum, roasted black cherry, almost red currants. Hot earth, smoke, Ceylon, dried flowers, leather, juniper, creosote, white pepper. VA is elevated but works nicely for me, lift and almost tightens up the palate somewhat. Almost every 2014 Priorat I’ve had has been awesome and bright, distinctive minerality in spades — 4 years ago

Chris McClellan

9.1

Gorgeous ripe black/red fruit with dried thyme/rosemary/tomato leaf/black tea, acid and tannin both elevated and well balanced and long finish. Paired great with homemade lasagna.... — 6 years ago

with Ryan and Michael

Rhonely Boy

9.0

Family Estate - Las Cerezas Vineyard - Organic - Molelumne River - Lodi

Plum, black cherry, earthy with slightest raisin box in the finish, pleasant acidity, alcohol fume a lil elevated.

Very nice on its own, would like see a blend with 15% Monastrell/Mataro/Mourvèdre ...MMM! — 6 years ago

Shengli Hu

9.2

Deep ruby/purple. Forest floor, clove, red currant, red cassis, vanilla, lean Cab Sauv texture. Dark cassis on the palate, cardamom. Chalky elevated tannins. In a good place already. — 3 years ago

Nicolas Greinacher

9.7

The 2001 Le Clos du Caillou Reserve is probably the most thrilling effort made by the late Jean-Denis Vacheron. Deep garnet in color, the wine displays intense aromas of dried provence herbs, iodine, dried strawberries, red cherries and plums, blackberry liquor, leather, forrest floor and a dash of white pepper. Full-bodied, the palate is almost overwhelmed by insane levels of fruit concentration and elevated alcohol, but there is just enough acidity to keep everything in balance. The long lasting, persistent finish confirms a wine of outstanding quality. Drink now until 2030. — 4 years ago

Shengli Hu

9.6

VA, dusty forest floor, fresh red cherry and raspberry, cherry liqueur, purple flower - lavender, red prune, just ripe fig, hefty nose of fresh rosemary, blackberry. Elevated acidity, fine pulverized integrated smooth medium tannins, crushed stone, dried red cherry, dried tomato, dried rose petal. Long lingering finish on the tomato leaf notes. This is what was paired with Grilled Lamb at Lazy Bear when we went late Aug 2022. — 4 years ago

Delectable Wine

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10

The 2018 Flaccianello della Pieve is another stellar wine from Fontodi. It is the richest Flaccianello ever made (in terms of dry extract), with elevated acidity that trails the 2016 by just a touch, but it does not taste like that at all. Dark cherry, violet, lavender, spice, mocha and graphite build with a bit of time in the glass. Like the Sorbo, the 2018 Flaccianello is not a wine of size, as in most previous years, but rather a wine that exudes vibrancy, energy and class from start to finish. I absolutely loved it. (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, September 2021)
— 5 years ago

Devin B

9.2

Lots of dark berries on front, with a tiny bit of spice.... and leather on the nose! Yum — 6 years ago

Shengli Hu

8.9

Medium yellow. Meyer lemon, lemon curd, yellow delicious apple, underripe white peach, sea salt, yeasty, briny, stony minerality, and hints of cheese rind. Tart citrus and high tone minerality on the palate. Elevated acidity, 12.5% abv, medium+ finish. Importer’s notes: From the right side of the Serein River, situated right next to the Grand Cru Blanchot. A soft and elegant wine, the Montée de Tonnerre is situated in the same line as the Grand Crus. The notable white clay helps to develop intense fruit and floral aromas. The older vines add the depth and complexity in the mouth. Regarded by many as the best and most consistent Premier Cru in Chablis. Lime-clay soils with Kimmeridgian fossils. Fermentation and maturing in stainless steel tanks. — 6 years ago

Deb Dellaposta

9.1

Lush strawberry jam, potpourri, dark chocolate and coffee on the finish. Elevated acidity. — 6 years ago