{"id":24821,"date":"2015-10-09T07:56:01","date_gmt":"2015-10-09T11:56:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/?p=24821"},"modified":"2015-10-13T13:50:56","modified_gmt":"2015-10-13T17:50:56","slug":"valpolicella-wine-tasting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/valpolicella-wine-tasting\/","title":{"rendered":"Jane\u2019s Gems: Valpolicella Wine Tasting Tour 2015"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Oct<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0A Taste of Italy, Romeo and Juliet, Shoe Shopping in Verona and Our Little Dessert<\/strong><\/p>\n

By Jane Staples<\/p>\n

I went shoe shopping last week.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t just any shopping spree, for, to begin with, I was in Verona, Italy.\u00a0 Any woman who loves shoes will agree that Italy is the place to be if you want to buy shoes.<\/p>\n

Now this was in fact a business trip, so my time was limited.\u00a0 I had 4 days of intensive classes and our group stayed on an Agroturismo farm just outside the city (that is to say, not near any shoe stores).\u00a0 The room was comfortable and quiet, the view outside my window lovely and the mother of the family baked cherry cake for our first breakfast, along with ham, \"Oct<\/a><\/strong>artisanal cheese, eggs, four kinds of homemade jam and freshly squeezed peach juice.\u00a0 So I wasn\u2019t complaining at all.<\/p>\n

Each day started like this. Thus fortified, we would then tour several vineyards and wineries, finishing each visit with a masterclass and tasting of wines from the Veneto area.\u00a0 The evenings were spent over leisurely multi-course dinners with wonderful wines. The Veneto region is known for bright fruity Valpolicellas, rich Ripassos, complex Amarones and a sweet dessert wine, Recioto.<\/p>\n

\"Oct<\/a><\/p>\n

I should mention that in Italy, there is a delightful tradition of \u201cpre-dessert\u201d followed by dessert.\u00a0 Of course, a champagne-filled chocolate served on ice is simply a palate cleanser and it is possible that a plate of artisanal cheese is served during the celebration of culinary art that occurs during dinner in Italy.\u00a0 As our host nonchalantly mentioned, \u201c this is our little dessert\u201d.<\/p>\n

This wonderful trip was organized by The Consortium for the Tutelage of Valpolicella DOC Wines, based in Verona. The Consortium represents more than 80% of the wine producers in the Valpolicella appellation.<\/p>\n

It promotes activities that celebrate the whole territory: the wine, Valpolicella history, its traditions, agroturism and the beautiful landscape of the area.\u00a0 The Consortium has also developed a phone app, \u201c Valpolicella Wines App\u201d, which is a great way to find the best restaurants\u00a0 and wine bars.\u00a0 It also provides space to record wine tasting notes and itineraries to help tourists explore the Valpolicella area.<\/p>\n

I was pretty sure I was living my dream\u2026wine, food, travel\u2026\u00a0 I was also brushing up on my Italian language skills.\u00a0 So each morning, I greeted my colleagues with \u201cCiao, Buongiorno\u201d.\u00a0 Each time we drove through town, when I spotted a shoe store, I would say in a distinct voice \u201ci scarpi\u201d(shoes).\u00a0 It became a refrain.<\/p>\n

\"Oct<\/a><\/p>\n

Verona is a charming city, famous for its Opera Festival each summer with performances in the ancient Roman Arena.\u00a0 It is also famous as the setting for Shakespeare\u2019s \u201cRomeo and Juliet\u201d.\u00a0 In the old part of the city, you can see the balcony where Juliet waited to catch a glimpse of Romeo.\u00a0 And of course, it is famous for wonderful wines.<\/p>\n

From the first day to the last, I was moved by the common feeling amongst all the winemakers; the love of their history and the attachment to the land.\u00a0 The beautiful wines of the Valpolicella region express their dedication and artistry.\u00a0 As the poet Mario Saldati said, \u201cWine is the poetry of the earth\u201d.<\/p>\n

So you\u2019re probably wondering about the shoes\u2026<\/p>\n

By the end of the week, my heart was full of happy memories and I had several new friends from the trip. On the way to the airport, I stopped and looked for shoes. With only one hour, I had to move quickly. Finally, I chose a pair of yellow ballerina flats, joyful and imaginative. They remind me of my wonderful week in Verona.<\/p>\n

I will return someday.\u00a0 Verona weaves a magic spell that is enchanting.\u00a0 But next time, I\u2019ll take an empty suitcase for \u201ci scarpi\u201d.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Villabella Cordevigo Bardolino Chiaretto DOC Classico Biologoco 2014 Veneto, Italy\"Villabella<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

A lovely pale apricot, pink in the glass, with grapefruit, lemon and apricot aromas.\u00a0 The fresh palate shows tropical fruit and ripe apricot with a medium-bodied, silky, satiny mouth-feel.\u00a0 Refreshing long finish.\u00a0 Very food-friendly.<\/p>\n

Alcohol: 12%
\nSweetness: Medium
\nBottle size: 750 ml
\nDrink: Now
\nPrice: $23.00
\nScore: 92<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Masimago Valpolicella Superiore \u00a02012 Veneto, Italy\"Masimago\"<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Made from hand-harvested Corvina, Corvinone and Rondinella grapes, this Valpolicella Superiore is deep ruby red with good viscosity. The fragrant nose shows ripe cherry, vanilla and slight pepper, then the delicious palate echoes and adds slight herbal sage and rosemary. Dry and mouth-watering, with a medium spicy cherry finish.<\/p>\n

Alcohol: 14.5%
\nSweetness: Extra Dry
\nBottle size: 750 ml
\nPrice: $27.00
\nDrink: Now
\nScore: 91<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Pasqua Villa Borghetti Passimento Rosso Regional Blended Red 2013 Veneto, Italy<\/strong><\/a>\"Pasqua\"<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Named for Verona, the Italian city of passion and romance, this Rosso Veneto is a blend of Merlot 40%, Corvina 30% and Croatina 30%. Dark garnet with slow legs and a tantalizing nose of vanilla, dark cherries, baking spice, cloves, a touch of pepper and mocha. The delicious palate gives mocha, vanilla and ripe cherries. Extra dry, satiny and very harmonious, with a long spicy cherry finish.<\/p>\n

Alcohol: 14 %
\nSweetness: Extra dry
\nBottle size: 750 ml
\nDrink: 2012-2015
\nPrice: $11.95
\nScore: 91<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Latium Morini Campo Dei Ciliegi Ripasso Valpolicella Superiore 2012 Veneto, Italy<\/strong><\/a>\"Latium<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

A dark garnet red Ripasso with good viscosity and a fragrant nose of vanilla, cherries and oak. The rich palate shows cherries, spice, leather, tobacco and oak in an extra dry, well-balanced mouth-feel and a long spicy cherry finish.<\/p>\n

Alcohol: 14.5%
\nSweetness: Extra dry
\nBottle size: 750 ml
\nDrink: 2013-2016
\nPrice: $19.95
\nScore: 90<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Santa Sofia Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico 2009\u00a0 Veneto, Italy<\/strong><\/a>\"Santa<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Inviting aromas of dark stewed fruit, tobacco and oak, followed by an intense powerful palate that adds dried herbs and vanilla. Velvety, harmonious and full-bodied with a long, layered finish.
\nTasted September 2015<\/p>\n

Alcohol: 15%
\nSweetness: Dry
\nSweetness: Dry
\nPrice: $49.95
\nDrink: 2015-2020
\nScore: 91<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Jane<\/a>Jane Staples<\/strong>
\nAccredited Sommelier & Wine Writer<\/p>\n

Jane graduated from Algonquin College\u2019s Sommelier Program with the Gold Medal in Food and Wine Pairing and a score of 94.5% in the final exam.<\/p>\n

She completed courses in Winetasting, Grape Varieties, Food and Wine Pairing, Old World Wines, New World Wines, Vinification and Advanced Sommelier Techniques. She also has a BA from the University of Toronto.<\/p>\n

Jane is a principal wine columnist for nataliemaclean.com, with this regular column, as well as for her own site, bellovino.ca.<\/strong> Jane is also the regular wine columnist for Ottawa Wedding Magazine and also writes for Alive Magazine.<\/p>\n

Jane provides sommelier services and tastings for private functions, and is fluent in English, French, Spanish and Italian.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0A Taste of Italy, Romeo and Juliet, Shoe Shopping in Verona and Our Little Dessert By Jane Staples I went shoe shopping last week.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t just any shopping spree, for, to begin with, I was in Verona, Italy.\u00a0 Any woman who loves shoes will agree that Italy is the place to be if you want to buy shoes. Now this was in fact a business trip, so my time was limited.\u00a0 I had 4 days of intensive classes and our group stayed on an Agroturismo farm just outside the city (that is to say, not near any shoe stores).\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,298,1153,373,1001,856,859,3,1148],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24821","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-events","category-italian-wine","category-jane-staples","category-red-wine-blend","category-rose","category-valpolicella","category-valpolicella-2012","category-wine-articles","category-wine-tasting-event"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24821","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24821"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24821\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24895,"href":"https:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24821\/revisions\/24895"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24821"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24821"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nataliemaclean.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24821"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}