🍷 Amarone

Amarone is a dry, strong red wine from Valpolicella in Veneto, northern Italy. It is made from partly dried grapes: the bunches are left for several months on racks or in ventilated rooms.

This method is called appassimento. The dried berries lose water, so sugar and flavour become concentrated. The juice ferments for a long time until nearly all the sugar turns into alcohol. So the wine is dry but very dense. It usually has 15–17% alcohol, and the rules require at least two years of ageing.

The main grape is Corvina, with other local varieties added. Amarone is a "relative" of Recioto: both come from dried grapes, but Recioto stays sweet. Ripasso is linked too, where young wine is steeped on Amarone pomace. All these wines are Italian, and Valpolicella is their shared home. Amarone is served with meat and aged cheeses.