Sopra Sasso Valpolicella Ripasso

Sopra Sasso Valpolicella Ripasso DOC.

Got it? Unless you’re fluent in Italian you’ll be wondering what on earth that all means. It’s all good, we’re here to break it down for ya…

Sopra Sasso – the name of the label, it means “stone balancing”
Valpolicella Ripasso – made from Valpolicella grapes and sitting on the third tier of a five tier classification system
DOC (Denominazione di Origine Controllata) – is the second level of a four tier Italian wine classification system (DOCG, DOC, IGP/IGT and finally Vino da Tavola, table wine or as we call it…plonk for plonkers!)

From Veneto in the north-west of Italy – an area best known for producing the world famous Valpolicella red wine. Valpolicella Ripasso is made using partially dried grapes, an Ancient Roman technique called “appassimento”.

This is the third tier of a five tier classification system for Valpolicella with the tier above called Amarone della Valpolicella. We like to think of this as a Baby Amarone! It offers the unique dried fruit characters of Amarone without the hefty price tag – you’d usually be looking at $50+ for a bottle of Amarone.

A smooth, rich, velvety red with dark cherry, berry fruit and wild herb flavours. Imported into NZ by Master of Wine Steve Bennett and packaged under this sexy looking label with a heavy embossed bottle – it looks the ‘biz. Pair it with braised meats and aged cheese.