2020 Tommasi Valpolicella Classico Superiore
- Nich Cossey
- Jan 2
- 2 min read
Opened a bottle of 2020 Tommasi Valpolicella Classico Superiore last night and thought it was worth a quick note. Valpolicella is a wine made from principally the Corvina grape in the Veneto region of Italy. It has 5 different levels that dictate different styles and I put a little graphic I stole from winefolly.com below. Basically, Valpolicella Classico and Valpolicella Classico Superiore are similar in style but superiore is just a higher quality. The same story is true of Valpolicella Ripasso and Amarone della Valpolicella with both similar in style but amarone being a better quality. Then Recioto della Valpolicella is a concentrated sweet apertif wine that is very different than the rest. The Classicos are fresh and red fruited with a moderately high acid that makes the wines refreshing. The Ripasso and Amarone are made from the same grapes but the grapes can be partially dehydrated before fermenting so the wines are very concentrated, rich, and have a little sweetness to them.
The Tommasi is a great example of the QPR that you can find in Italy. On the nose it had red fruit, light herbaceous notes a touch of barnyard aroma that blew off after 10 minutes. On the palate it was rich red fruit, a touch of sweet spice, and some cocoa as well as a medium body and juicy, zesty acidity. Tannins were present but toned down by the acidity. The mouthfeel was nice and rich but had a lot of cut from the acidity which made this have a light sweet-sour effect that was really nice. This wine has been rated as high as 95 points but I'd give it 93-94. Definitely, a step up from a regular weeknight bottle. But, at $22/bottle still really affordable for whenever. If you haven't tried a Valpolicella this would be a great first experience as it has great typicity but also just a fun wine. It would do great with meaty stews or braised meat dishes too. Just make sure you give it 10 minutes before making decisions. The barnyard aromas are very much present initially but completely blow off in a few minutes and could be initially distracting. I'm planning to order more a few more bottles of this.
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