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corte-sant-alda-recioto veneto

Recioto della Valpolicella DOCG

Veneto, Italy

Recioto is Valpolicella’s original sweet wine, with a legacy stretching back to Roman times, crafted from dried grapes for a lusciously rich yet balanced expression. Corte Sant’Alda selects only the ripest clusters from biodynamic vineyards, drying them slowly and fermenting until the ideal sweetness is achieved. Fermentation is carefully halted to preserve natural residual sugar, and the wine is aged in oak to develop complexity and roundness. This is Recioto at its most elegant and poised. Intense aromas of blackberry compote, dried cherry and dark cocoa rise from the glass, followed by a velvety, sweetly spiced palate. Lifted acidity keeps it fresh and vibrant, pairing beautifully with chocolate desserts or pungent blue cheese.

Colour
Red
ABV
15%
Organic Status
Organic and Biodynamic
Style
Sweet
Volume
50cl
Ageing Potential
Ageworthy
Grape
Corvina Grossa 60% Rondinella 40%
Case Size
6x50cl
corte-sant'alda-winery

The Producer

We have had the pleasure of working with Marinella Camerani for more than a two decades.  During that time CSA has emerged from Valpolicella’s backwaters to take centre stage amongst the region’s most celebrated producers.  In 2008 Gambero Rosso crowned Marinella her ‘Winemaker of the Year’, a fitting accolade for a woman whose vision and determination have established this estate at the forefront of Italian winemaking.

Fermentation for all the wines is in upright wooden tini and all are hand-plunged.  Marinella’s vineyards are planted on the limestone-rich soils found in the Illasi valley.  Here, the foothills of the Dolomites offer a steep SW exposure and excellent drainage.  VSP is used throughout to facilitate ripening and reduce disease pressure.  Corte Sant’Alda is the only estate in the Veneto to be certified both organic and biodynamic.

Each wine is utterly typical of its style: ‘Ca Fiui’ is young, zappy, fresh and vibrant, the Ripasso is richer and reflects its time in cherry-wood casks whilst the Amarone has the heft and density typical of wines made from concentrated grapes.  Marinella is one of the few remaining producers to continue the ancient practice of air-drying all the grapes used in the Amarone and the Recioto.  35 tons of fruit have had the rotten berries removed.  One by one.  It’s an absurdly time-consuming process but the slow desiccation results in complexity rather than just concentration.  The Recioto finishes its fermentation without filtration.