2020 Speri Monte Sant'Urbano Amarone, Pedemonte Veneto

Big, bold, and beautiful doesn't always mean brash. From high-altitude vineyards comes this masterclass in classic style, dried cherries and plums weave through tobacco leaf and fresh leather while Mediterranean herbs add lift. The palate brings serious depth but stays pristine, old-school winemaking showing why tradition matters. Fine tannins frame everything perfectly as dark chocolate and spice notes complete the picture. When power meets mountain air clarity. Drink Now - 2050

96 points Wine Enthusiast

The Speri family has been growing grapes in Valpolicella for seven generations, firmly established at Pedemonte in the heart of the Classico zone. Still family owned, they work exclusively with estate grown fruit and have been certified organic for more than a decade. Monte Sant’Urbano is their flagship vineyard and one of the great names of Amarone, prized for producing wines of tremendous concentration without sacrificing freshness or the savoury character of the hills north of Verona.

Monte Sant’Urbano sits high above Fumane on beautifully exposed limestone terraces, where breezes help keep the grapes healthy through the growing season. Corvina and Corvinone form the heart of the traditional blend, with carefully selected bunches dried after harvest before a long fermentation. This appassimento process concentrates flavour and structure, yet Speri has never chased sweetness or sheer weight. The 2020 is powerful, certainly, but there is freshness and definition beneath all that richness.

Deep garnet with black cherry, dark plum and dried cherry at its core, joined by blackberry and orange peel. Violet, liquorice and cocoa emerge with air, followed by cinnamon, tobacco, dried sage and bitter almond. The palate is broad and velvety, with concentrated dark fruit wrapped around firm, beautifully integrated tannins. Dried cherry and plum move through dark chocolate, spice and tobacco before a long, warm, savoury finish.

Braised beef cheek over soft polenta will comfortably handle its scale, as will duck with figs and radicchio or slow cooked lamb with rosemary. For a meat free option, porcini and Taleggio polenta has all the earthy richness required, while a chunk of properly aged Parmigiano makes a very persuasive reason to keep the bottle on the table after dinner.

Cellaring: Drink now to 2045+.