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A total seductress, the 2017 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico is a dark beauty. It opens with a dusty bouquet of dried flowers and masses of cherry sauce, offset by spiced orange and nuances of violet pastille. It sweeps across the palate, a model of purity, with crisp wild berry fruits energized by tantalizing acidity and shavings of dark chocolate. Crunchy mineral tones emerge toward the close. The 2017 lingers impossibly long yet remains completely fresh. Grippy tannins remain as hints of dried blueberry and lavender resonate throughout. The Quintarelli winery has been working hard to perfect a style that mixes the magic of older vintages with a new level of freshness, and the 2017 is a big step in the right direction. Bravo.Vinous Media | 96+ VM

Here’s an iconic wine from the Veneto made from a blend of 68% Cabernet Sauvignon and 32% Merlot. The Maculan 2017 Fratta shows enormous intensity, muscle and brawn. The wine has absorbed every last drop of sunshine, heat and dry weather conditions that characterized the 2017 growing season, and it does so with elegance and poise. The wine is impeccably balanced with dark fruit and spice. It’s the kind of big-boned red wine you’ll want to pair with a hearty dish of barbecue or marinated beef. Some 7,000 bottles were made, and I tasted bottle number 589. The Fratta spirit is beautifully expressed in 2017.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPDeep, dense aromas of crushed black fruit with notes of charcoal and dried herbs, such as rosemary and thyme. The fruit envelops the lightly firm tannins on the full-bodied palate, creating a dense, velvety and lengthy mouthful. A well-crafted red that’s highly concentrated and bursting with flavor, but it also shows astute balance. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 94 JSThe 2017 Fratta lifts up with a dark and alluring display of black currants, sweet herbs, rich notes of mocha and savory brown spice. This is cool-toned and spicy, a bit lean, yet with a polished feel, showing tart blackberries offset by hints of sour citrus and toasty oak, as violet-tinged florals form toward the close. Fine tannins make themselves known throughout the finale, as this tapers off lightly structured, with hints of licorice lingering long. The Fratta is a blend of 67% Cabernet Sauvignon and 33% Merlot, refined for one year in French barriques. While a year or two of cellaring may bring a bit more flesh to the expression, I expect the 2017 will always have a slender feel.Vinous Media | 92 VM

This is one of those wines where your nose is in the glass for ages, enjoying the complex array of aromas that range from raspberries to dates, perfumed bark to polished wood, pressed flowers to fresh mushrooms. Full-bodied, dense and focused with fine, well-integrated tannins, plenty of fruit flavor and an endless finish. A joy to drink even now, but this will age gracefully for many a year.James Suckling | 98 JSThe 2017 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva Sergio Zenato is totally classic to the Zenato style, with macerated cherries, raisins, sweet herbs, cocoa, black pepper and shavings of cedar. This deeply textural with a dense wave of mineral-encased dark red fruits and balsamic spice carried across a core of stimulating acidity. Mocha and clove mix with black currant and olive as the 2017 finishes dramatically long and potent. There’s simply so much going on here, and more is guaranteed to come with maturation. Also of note is that the 2017 clocks in at only 3.3 grams of residual sugar. This is as serious as they comeVinous Media | 97 VM

The 2017 Amarone della Valpolicella Case Vecie is dreamy, wafting up with a remarkably fresh bouquet that features roses, violets, shavings of cedar, dusty cherry and sweet smoke. This is elegance personified, with ripe red and black fruits excited by vibrant acidity as confectionary spice emerges. Minerals add a more tactile feel toward the close. Balsam herbs and hints of mocha resonate as the 2017 finishes with a gentle tug of tannin and a slight bitter twang that punctuates the wine perfectly. This child of a warm vintage shows impressive balance and tremendous potential for the future. Bury your bottles deep.Vinous Media | 96 VMEnticing aromas of dried strawberries and raspberries, together with notes of heather-like herbs and dried citrus peel. Full-bodied with beautiful, silky tannins that embrace the fruit and add length. In fact this is very long, releasing more and more cedar and spicy dried peel for you to savor. An excellent 2017 from a top Amarone vineyard site. Enjoyable now and will age for many a year.James Suckling | 94 JS