2009 Amarone della Valpolicella

Celestino Gasperi is the extremely talented and knowledgeable owner of Zymé, whose first vintage was the 1999. You might say he started from the top, first producing Amarone and then Valpolicella only much later. In fact, his first Amarone dates back to 2001, his Bordeaux blends back to 2006 (Bordeaux red blends have always been very common wines in Veneto), and finally making a Valpolicella Superiore and a Valpolicella entry level wine in 2009. Most importantly, Gasperi is well educated about the local grape varieties and terroir, and is the only producer in Italy to make a wine with the rare Rondinella Bianca (a color mutation of the red berried Rondinella). He is also one of the biggest experts around on Oseleta, a native grape that has had considerable success in the area over the last decade, thanks to his passion.