Description
Roccolo Grassi Valpolicella Superiore is an incredible, bold fine wine. Its colour is a deep ruby red. The spiciness of tobacco and white pepper, the mineral notes of graphite, coffee, cherry and small red berries are noticeable on the nose. In the mouth it is fat, full-bodied, and soft. Sweet tannins, yet of great depth, are appreciable. This is undeniably elegant, with its silky textures that seem to coat the entire palate in a seductive layer of violet-tinged fruits and suave lavender and chocolate notes. That said, this is not sweet nor overly rich; in fact, it is truly harmonious and poised, boasting tremendous concentration that‘s lifted by saline-infused acids. It leaves the palate completely saturated with cloves and allspice, as it tapers off structured and long. A very fine and complex wine, definitely an ambitious Valpolicella, full of character and personality, which enhances with aging in bottle. This is next-level Valpolicella Superiore. Pairs with meat dishes including steak, venison. Mushroom, truffle risotto. Decant 2-3 hours before enjoying.
Valpolicella Superiore Roccolo Grassi is made from about 60% fresh grapes and 40% grapes that have been slightly dried for 20 days (the amount of grapes dried and the number of days vary from year to year; this slight dehydration of the grapes allows to change the skin/pulp ratio and therefore to maintain a very fresh fruit, but a little more concentrated and rich in noble components present in the skins); This is followed by 20 months of aging in wood, blending and bottling. This wine is produced in a part of the vineyard designed to produce only Valpolicella, in which the grapes for Amarone are not selected; this allows for more concentration, great complexity and aromatic finesse.
Vines range from 10- to 40-years-old and lie between 100 m to 350 m in elevation with climate transitions from Mediterranean to Continental. Located on the eastern hillside of the Lessini Hills in Valpolicella, the Roccolo Grassi vineyard soil consists of decomposed volcanic rock filled with glacial stone. The vineyard is planted with the traditional Valpolicella red grapes – Corvina (60%), Rondinella (20%), Corvinone (15%) and Croatina (<5%). The white grape, Garganega (<5%), grows at 100 m altitude on the calcareous soil of the 2 ha vineyard, La Broia, in Soave. The wine must be minimum of 45% slope in order to labeled “Superiore”.
Pruning is carefully performed on each single plant, in an effort to keep the grape yields low and have them reach perfect ripeness. All this is accomplished by implementing sustainable viticulture practices.
The estate combines old and new world techniques by using traditional Italian varieties with temperature-controlled technology during the winemaking process. In addition, the renewable energy at the winery is self-produced through the use of solar panels. Wine is aged carefully in selected large French barrels and some Slavonian oak casks.
Roccolo Grassi was established in 1996 by Bruno Sartori and his two children Marco and Francesca. The name refers to the estate’s most prized vineyard ‘Roccolo Grassi’. The family’s vision is to harvest quality grapes and to produce relatively low yields of outstanding wine. In total, the estate consists of 14 ha of vineyards farmed sustainably in the regions of Valpolicella and Soave.
