Valpolicella Classico DOC 20232 – Allegrini

To produce the Valpolicella Classico DOC Allegrini, the hand-harvested grapes were destemmed and soft-pressed. Fermentation occurred at 25-31ºC in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks and lasted nine days. Then the wine was held in stainless steel tanks until bottling in mid-February and spent a further two months in bottle before release.

The south-east facing vineyards are located in the hills of the Valpolicella Classico region at 180-280 metres above sea level. The soil is very varied but mostly clay and calcareous of volcanic origin. The older vineyards are trained using the pergola Trentina system, planted with about 3,000 vines per hectare, whereas the newer vines use the single Guyot system with 5,000 plants per hectare. The vines are 32 years old on average.

The Allegrini family estate covers 120 hectares of vineyard in the heart of the Valpolicella Classico area. The family has been growing grapes here for six generations, but the estate in its current form was founded by Giovanni Allegrini. When he passed away in 1983, it passed to his three children, who ran it together until Walter’s death in July 2003. Franco now looks after the vineyards and is the winemaker, and Marilisa is director of marketing.