2019 Monte Santoccio Valpolicella Ripasso

2019 Monte Santoccio Valpolicella Ripasso

2019 Monte Santoccio Valpolicella Ripasso The 2019 Valpolicella Ripasso from Monte Santoccio is a beautiful wine. On the nose, notes of violets and a touch of pot pourri hint at a complex, profound wine. The palate is rich and powerful, but with verve and vibrancy. Notes of kirsch and wild flowers last on the incredibly long, savoury finish. This is a delight to drink: a stunning discovery, and one that will last a decade or more.

Clean, intense and complex aroma or blackberries, plum and cherries jam, balsamic notes and very long finish. Offers up a gorgeous array of crushed flowers, red berries and sweet spices in an ethereal style. The wine has awesome grace and impeccable balance and in the glass acquires superb richness and concentration.

Remember your first kiss? The heightened sense of anticipation, waiting to find out what it would be like? Would it be good, would you do it well, would you do it badly? Did you have a mint before? And then remember the feeling once it was over and that you wanted it to happen again? That is what this is like when you try this wine. Your first sip is full of expectation and apprehension, and then once you’ve tried it once, you want more and more and more!

Do yourself a favor and get this wine. We got a shipment in January and customers have been begging for more ever since. We have been able to secure 20 more cases.

This is one of the greatest values I have tasted this year. The power, concentration and depth combined with length, elegance and grace are spectacular in this wine. I taste thousands of wines throughout the year. This is a great discovery. The father of Amarone is Giuseppe Quintarelli and is responsible for some of the highest quality wines ever made from Italy. His wine, when available, cost $500 plus for his Amarone. Unfortunately Mr. Quintarelli recently passed away, the future of who will make his wines is uncertain but time will tell. Before his death Quintarelli took on a disciple Nicola Ferrari, who spent years working side by side with Quintarelli learning his secrets, that it is essential to control every part of the wine making process and the vineyards. Nicola decided to strike out on his own purchasing three hectares in Fumane. I can tell you his Amarone is every bit as good as Quintarelli but at a fraction of the price. The “London Telegraph” recently commented “Judging by the two wines I have tasted, Nicola Ferrari is an eloquent successor to his master. I’ve tried a number of Quintarelli Amarone in the last three years, including lately and I don’t think they’re better. Honestly.”

Today I bring you Monte Santoccio’s smart buy, the 2019 Monte Santoccio Valpolicella Ripasso. Ripasso is a process where they run the free run juice over the must/pomace of the Amarone and the result is a wine that takes on the characteristics of an Amarone, opulence, richness and concentration but at a much more affordable price. The result is a spectacular value that absolutely blew me away. Limited one time shot on this wine.