Gran Signoria - Valpolicella Ripasso 2021
A northern Italian wine, drunk in Sicily...
I’m consistently drawn to the ripasso style of wines, having first really been aware of it after drinking an Amarone with my father many years ago. That wine blew my mind, but decent bottles of this style mostly cost far more than I can spend outside a really special occasion.
It is this ripasso style that differentiates this wine from valpolicella; the grapes are dried, concentrating the sugar, making it rich and heavy. Critics would use the description ‘jammy’ - but who doesn’t like jam? Yes, it’s bordering on the sweet; yes, it’s lacking the structure vinophiles would want from a fine wine, but for general drinkability, it’s hard to beat. Mass market this sort of competitively priced ripasso style may be, but why not? If you want a wine that’s smooth, not too strong but with a rounded flavours of red fruit and cherries, get something similar, even if you can’t find this particular one.
I confess that I bought this while in Sicily, making it a bottle that moved the whole length of Italy from the vineyards in the north to the ‘ball’ off the tip of the boot. Fewer food miles than those bottles destined for the UK, but not environmentally great in comparison to the bottles available in local stores across the island from the nearby producers. It was grabbed in a hurry from a discount retailer, into which we’d popped to buy fresh bread and tomatoes for lunch. We uncorked it on our final night on the island and enjoyed a glass each. But it didn’t survive the car journey back to my home - a long, hot slog along the autostrada which killed the half bottle that we recorked, conscious of the early start the following morning. Nonetheless, it got a second life, enriching a tomato-based sauce. Valpolicella, delivering in both Sicily and Campania!
Price: Very cheap. Something under 5 Euros from a discount store. In the UK, not much more, probably around 7-8 pounds.
Eat: It isn’t rocket science. Drink it with red sauces and meaty main courses. I’d also highly recommend it with a slice of hard cheese - parmesan/grana padano or similar. Excellent
!