Tommasi Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2017

The 2017 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico opens with a minty freshness, as bright red berries and dusty dried

From a very hot and dry vintage, the Tommasi 2017 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico is supple and round with plenty of soft fruit at its core. The vintage is less complex, with less depth, but it does deliver sweet tones of cherry, ripe plum and crème de cassis. Light shadings of spice and tobacco help to flesh it out. Tommasi's classic Amarone is a blend of 50% Corvina, 30% Corvinone, 15% Rondinella and 5% Oseleta. The grapes are sourced from the Le Groletta and Conca d'Oro vineyards, which have medium-rich limestone soils and lots of fossils.

A lively, medium- to full-bodied red, round and well-balanced, offering an enticing range of steeped cherry and fig cake flavors with accents of dried thyme, pomegranate and espresso. Creamy, lightly spiced finish. Corvina, Rondinella, Corvinone and Oseleta. Drink now through 2026. 29,000 cases made, 2,500 cases imported.

This has a shy nose that eventually reveals whiffs of stewed prune, leather and tilled earth. The solid palate offers baked plum, candied raisin and a dollop of vanilla alongside polished, rather relaxed tannins before a bitter almond finish. Drink through 2026.