Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG Classico Riserva “Mater” by Domini Veneti
The ‘Mater’ stands for ‘Mother Nature’, intended to signify the relationship (indeed, collaboration) between the winemaker and the environment, but in many ways it is also the ‘Mother’ of Domini Veneti’s Amarone wines, the real top-of-the-range product the absolute best they have to offer.
Winemaking: hand-selection of only the best grapes in the vineyard. Exceptionally long appassimento period in the fruttaio (over four months!), followed by a month-long fermentation in steel before at least 4 years barrel ageing before bottling and release.
Assemblage: corvina 60%, corvinone 15%, rondinella 15%, 10% others.
Soil: alluvial base, with clay and limestone deposits.
Alcohol: 16.5%.
Colour: deep purple and red tinges, even tending to brick-colour.
Aroma: the classic plums and cherries, as well as figs, prunes and even a certain apricot tinge, not to mention remarkable tertiary characteristics like arabica coffee notes, bitter cocoa powder, and a dusky woodiness.
Palate: truly huge, full-bodied, but also remarkably soft and velvety with an austere tannic backbone and refreshing acidity to create a really harmonious overall mouthfeel. Fruit-forward, but elegant as well, with plenty of elevated smoke and mocha, as well as vegetal and leafy aspects. Spectacular.
Ageability: a wine of extraordinary substance, it could age for an extraordinarily long time. 20 years plus.
Pairing: braised game and beef, but really a sipper, one for a long afternoon and longer evening.
Nick Singleton –
We had a bottle of this while dining and loved it so much we had it shipped to us during lockdown! A good one when it is in stock.