In today's Wine -Searcher tasting, David Allen MW, our Wine Director, tastes what is probably the benchmark example of Amarone della Valpolicella, Masi's Costasera Amarone. This wine is from the 2018 vintage.
Masi Agricola is a wine producer in Veneto, northern Italy. It is famous for its Valpolicella wines - and, in particular, for its Amarone wines - although it draws on a range of native and international grape varieties, from Corvina and Pinot Grigio to Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.
The estate is owned by the Boscaini family, who named it for the Vaio de Masi valley that was a part of the original purchase. Now, Masi owns vineyards throughout the region, including in the Bardolino Classico and Soave Classico DOC zones as well as in Valpolicella. Since the 1950s, Masi have had several "cru" vineyards, which make single-vineyard Amarone wines. This kind of classification, used widely in France, has become popular in Italy in recent years - Barolo wines are also often labeled in this way.
The Masi cellars are specifically geared toward the appassimento technique of drying grapes on bamboo racks. They are temperature- and humidity-controlled, with sufficient ventilation to allow for the drying of the grapes. These levels of temperature and humidity have been taken from historical vintages when the Amarone was of particularly high quality. Masi also uses a range of different oak treatments for its wines, and has a long history of experimentation with everything from fermentation to new clones in the vineyards.
The portfolio is extensive, covering everything from single-vineyard Amarone to inexpensive varietal wines under the Verona IGT and delle Venezie designations. As well as the Italian portfolio, Masi owns a winery in Argentina's Mendoza region named Tupungato, after the subregion where it is located.
Find out where to buy this wine, its pricing and additional background information by following this link to the Wine-Searcher website below: www.wine-searcher.com/find/ma...
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