Tedeschi Capitel Monte Olmi Amarone della Valpolicella DOC Classico Riserva

Description

Tedeschi Capitel Monte Olmi Amarone is what we call this wine for short but, to give it its full name it would be Tedeschi Capitel Monte Olmi Amarone della Valpolicella DOC Classico Riserva, which I think you’ll agree is a bit of a mouthful, an apt description for one of Tedeschi’s top wine!

Tedeschi trace their roots back to 1824 when Nicolo Tedeschi purchased several vineyards (although the family have records of owning vineyards back to 1630). A descendant, Riccardo Tedeschi, purchased vineyards in 1918 which included Monte Fontana and their famous Amarone vineyard, Monte Olmi. Today Tedeschi remains a family business and, through a combination of tradition and innovation, is one of the foremost wineries, and one of the top producers of Amarone and Recioto wines, in the Veneto region. The family manages 74 hectares of vineyards, of which 29 are family owned. Amarone della Valpolicella is considered to be the most prestigious wine of the Veneto region.

Tedeschi Capitel Monte Olmi Amarone is a single vineyard Amarone from the Monte Olmi vineyard. It is located in Pedemonte di Valpolicella in the heart of Valpolicella Classica. It is 2 and a half hectares in size laid out on terraces with a south-western exposure. The terracing helps drainage. The soils here are red clay and limestone of moraine origins, the depth and the clay structure of soils help to retain water during dry periods.

The grapes are harvested at the end of September / beginning of October and are a mixture of Corvina 30%, Corvinone 30%, Rondinella 30% and 10% composed of Oseleta, Negrara, Dindarella, Croatina and Forselina.  Grapes are harvested by hand and placed in wooden or plastic trays for drying. Drying is done in fruit storage structures at controlled humidity and temperature. This prevents the occurrence of Botrytis cinerea (Noble Rot). Bunches, during the drying process, lose 30% of their weight and sugar concentration reaches 25% by weight. Bunches must be in good health at the end of the drying process (after about 4 months). Then, usually in January, the grapes are gently pressed by a roller press. Fermentation takes place in steel vessels at a temperature of 15°C and with slow 40-day steeping and the the wine does not undergo malolactic fermentation. At the end of fermentation the wine is put into Slavonian oak barrels aged for three or four years. It is then aged at least 6 months in bottle prior to release.