2005 Giuseppe Quintarelli Bianco Secco Ca' Del Merlo

Giuseppe Quintarelli was a trailblazer in the Veneto region of Italy, where until his death in 2012 he led one of Italy’s most respected wine estates. Quintarelli grew up on the estate that his father founded in the 1920s, and by the 1950s Giuseppe was cutting grape yields and taking other labor intensive steps to improve the quality of the estate’s wines. His attention to quality paid off, and by the 1970s his Valpolicellas and other wines had attained cult status. In the 1980s his Amarones and Reciotos were some of Italy’s most sought after wines. Today the 30-acre estate in Negrar is run by his children and the estate is still winning awards. Gambero Rosso, Italy’s leading wine journal, has awarded the estate 3 Bicchieri, its highest rating, numerous times. Gambero Rosso notes that “distinctive character and complexity…are the hallmarks of all Quintarelli products.”

Valpolicella DOC near Verona, in Veneto, earned appellation status in 1968. Viticulture has thrived in the region since the ancient Greeks first planted vineyards, and the tradition of using partially dried grapes to produce the concentrated red wine we now call Amarone is attributed to the Greeks. The fertile soils of the area combined with relatively mild climate in the shadows of the Alps has made Valpolicella a major wine producing region throughout history. Valpolicella is made from a blend of the Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara grapes, and can also contain small amounts of other red grapes. Valpolicella Superiore must be aged a minimum of one year. In 2008 and 2009 smaller appellations for Ripasso della Valpolicella and Amarone della Valpolicella were added to the district.