2004 Amarone della Valpolicella

The 2004 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico is fabulous. Espresso, grilled herbs, leather, black pepper, wild cherries and licorice blossom on the palate as this layered, totally sublime Amarone conquers the palate. This is a mid-weight style of Amarone built on a core of elegance rather than sheer power. The 2004 is just a touch forward, which is the only thing that keeps the score from going higher. Based on the more recent wines I tasted, there seems to be no limit to what this estate can achieve. The Amarone is 30% Corvina, 30% Corvinone, 30% Rondinella and 5% each Oseleta and Croatina. The wine was aged in a combination of French oak barrels and casks. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2019. Proprietor Celestino Gaspari was once the heir apparent at Quintarelli. He has since struck out on his own at Zyme, where he spares no expense in his quest to make rich, textured wines. With this set of new releases it appears Gaspari has begun to achieve some of his lofty goals. These are simply fabulous wines. It will be interesting to see where the estate goes from here, but the direction seems pretty clear. Importer: Riviera Imports, Long Island City, NY; tel. (917) 328-8830