The beautifully refined 2004 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Selezione Giuseppe Quintarelli captures the magic and the grace of classic Quintarelli. The only problem is getting your hands on one of these very hard to find bottles. The bouquet is delicate and feminine with enduring tones of wild berry, forest floor, balsam herb, cola and sweet almond. The wine's texture is silky and long with an impressive level of polish on the tannins. The 2004 vintage is especially prone to long aging.95 points from Robert Parker, The Wine AdvocateGIUSEPPE QUINTARELLIIt is impossible to speak about Quintarelli without superlatives. The name itself stands for so much: the family, the wines, a style, a tradition, a way of doing things. After all the time, effort, patience, and care that go into the making of a bottle of Quintarelli, it truly does mean so much more than wine. Giuseppe, fondly known as Bepi to those closest to him, was a perfectionist in every way. From the beautiful handwritten labels, to the best possible quality cork, to the exquisite wine in the bottles, the Quintarelli name is a stamp of authenticity and the ultimate indication of an artisanal, handmade, uncompromising wine of the highest quality. Nothing is ever hurried at Quintarelli. The wines take their time and are given the time they need. In the still, quiet calm of the family cellars above the town of Negrar, along the winding via del Cer, deep in the Valpolicella zone, the wine from the familys hillside vineyards ages patiently and gracefully in large casks until it is ready. Every release is a masterpiece, a testament to time, tradition, skill, and passion, the creations of a master artisan. You cant really compare these wines to any other in the region, or anywhere else in the world. They really are in a class and a category all their own. Multiple passages through the vineyards produce a myriad of wines, many produced using the appassimento technique whereby the grapes are dried on rush mats before being pressed and made into wine. From the delicious and seductive Bianco Secco, to the benchmark Valpolicella that created a revolution in the thinking about what it was possible to produce in this region, to the Rosso del Bepi and Amarones produced according to the quality of the harvest, to the otherworldly Recioto and the exceedingly rare Bandito, the sheer artistry and depth of the range is truly exceptional. A bottle of Quintarelli never disappoints!
