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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 90.8 pts. and median of 92 pts. in 45 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by Dibbs on 11/27/2023 & rated 94 points: Probably the best Valpo from Dal Forno tasted in recent memory. Took about an hour to open up in the glass. Such fantastic persistence and youth are shown on the palate without being overripe. The Amarone takes about 30 years to come around but the Valpo is ready by 15-17 years and way cheaper. Get as much as you want of these because it still have at least 10 years left. (411 views) | | | Tasted by hsacks on 1/7/2023 & rated 91 points: Medium red color. Aromas of black cherry kirsch, licorice and prune. Fully integrated medium-bodied fruit in the mouth with very ggod depth and length. Silky but a little tired on the palate. While enjoyable, bottle was clearly on the downside of its peak drinking period. Drink up! (846 views) | | | Tasted by oakville72 on 10/30/2022 & rated 91 points: (NOTE: The wine I tasted does not indicate Vigneto di Monte Lodoletta on the bottle.) Typical Dal Forno, deep, brooding and well oaked. Beginning to show its age, and it's drying out a bit. Drinkable now and for another few years. (960 views) | | | Tasted by forceberry on 5/6/2022 & rated 92 points: Typically a blend of Corvina (70%), Rondinella (20%), Croatina (5%) and Oseleta (5%). Although the wine is labeled as "Valpolicella Superiore", it's vinified almost like an Amarone: the grapes are dried in a ventilated room for 1,5 months following the harvest. After the grapes have been raisinated, the wine is fermented and macerated in stainless steel for two weeks. Aged in new oak barriques for 24 months, after the wine is filtered and bottled. The wine is not released before aging in bottles for a minimum of three years. 14,5% alcohol. Tasted blind.
Rather deep and quite opaque cherry-red color with an evolved maroon hue. The nose feels dense, ripe and sweet-toned with fragrant aromas of boysenberries and cherry marmalade, some ripe plummy tones, a little bit of raisiny dark fruit, light oaky nuances of savory wood spice and cacao, a balsamic hint of VA and a touch of old leather. The wine is ripe, quite concentrated and textural on the palate with a full body and subtly sweetish flavors of cherry marmalade and bilberry, some boysenberry tones, a little bit of sour cherry bitterness, light woody notes of savory oak spice and cacao nibs, a hint of pruney dark fruit and a balsamic touch of VA. The overall feel is quite muscular and structured, thanks to the high acidity and quite ample tannins that contribute both to the dense texture and moderately grippy structure of the wine. The finish is rich, textural and moderately grippy with bold flavors of cherry marmalade, savory wood spice, some pruney tones, a little bit of sweet bilberry, light balsamic notes of VA, a hint of sour cherry bitterness and a touch of exotic spices.
Other people guessed Californian Merlot, Australian Shiraz and other new world wines, whereas I immediately thought that this tasted like Amarone - probably 15-20 years old - and guessed accordingly. I was told it was close enough to be correct, but when prompted to guess the producer, I never thought of Dal Forno. This is because all the Dal Forno wines I've tasted (that have been noticeably younger) have been so heavily oaky that I never thought the oak influence would subside so quickly. I have been told the wines are completely different after 20-25 years of aging, and now that I've tasted one, I must say that it really seems to be the case: although the oak influence still lingers there, this doesn't taste like a concentrated milkshake of dark chocolate and toasted oak spice, but instead a surprisingly refined wine that has those balsamic and dried-fruit characteristics typical of Amarone, but enough sense of finesse and balance to come across as fine wine, not an over-oaked blockbuster. I'm positively surprised. Although I'm not fully convinced if the wine is actually worth the price (75€), this is nevertheless probably the best Dal Forno wine I've tasted. (1748 views) | | | Tasted by canan on 11/18/2021 & rated 91 points: Dal Forno Valpolicella Vertical (Nemogaarden): Elegant cherry fruit with a decent depth but it seems very much off balance. The alcohol is dominating and there is not a lot of joy for me in drinking this. (1840 views) | | | Tasted by #1 or #2? on 11/7/2021 & rated 91 points: cloudy in appearance, like prune juice, and lighter around the edges. other than plum, the nose is all organics and earth, with tar, smoke, olives and chocolate. with an hour of air, it opens up and the palate is smooth and velvety. some tannin lingering, flavours are quite herbal and raisin-like, slightly medicinal but not offensive. surely past its prime but this still makes for a rich and concentrated amarone. 91+ (1455 views) | | | Tasted by AudunG on 4/7/2021 & rated 88 points: Loads of sediments. Soft and opulent. Full bodied is an understatement. Impressive, but two glasses was enough. (1400 views) | | | Tasted by railgunner on 8/24/2019 & rated 93 points: Developed nicely with a 50 minute decant. Savory aromas of soy sauce, leather, dried herbs, dark cherries. Fading a bit, I would drink it if you have it. (1999 views) | | | Tasted by Sir-Harrie on 12/6/2018 & rated 92 points: Wow, positive Überraschung. Waren im Sommer auf dem Weingut und Luca erzählte uns, dass 99 sehr schwierig war. Der Wein steht in voller Kraft da und entwickelt sich nach einer Stunde deutlich. Klasse. (2140 views) | | | Tasted by Boomer Sooner on 5/31/2018 & rated 89 points: Wasn’t a great vintage. A little disappointing for a Dal Forno. Probably past it’s prime. Still enjoyable. (2241 views) | | | Tasted by Sirmika on 2/13/2017 & rated 92 points: Time to drink. But wonderful (3326 views) | | | Tasted by Sir-Harrie on 2/5/2017 & rated 91 points: Tiefdunkle fast schwarze Farbe, klar. Tolle Aromen nach Pflaume, etwas Kirsche, Cassis, Röstaromen mit Tabak. Präsent und filigran. (2912 views) | | | Tasted by cos82 on 11/3/2016 flawed bottle: Lightly corked on nose and palate which got worse and stronger as the night went on. Disappointing and disgusting. (2617 views) | | | Tasted by wculpepper on 1/19/2016 & rated 90 points: Good fill and cork. Decanted for four hours; heavy sediment. Somewhat cloudy garnet with bricking. Flowery nose of plum, tobacco and spices. Full-bodied tart fruit on the palate, quite dry, and no longer a match for its lively acids and chewy tannins. Medium length finish. At the end of its drinking life. (3054 views) | | | Tasted by LWI on 1/18/2014 & rated 92 points: Saturday night wines: Blind. Very dark, violent, bark, tannin and acidity, dried fruits, dry tobacco (not typical sweet pipe tobacco), long. To appreciate it, you have to go with the ride. I liked the fare far more than others. (5287 views) | | | Tasted by Sirmika on 3/29/2013 & rated 93 points: More acidity more juicy than vintage 1998. but still a superb wine. Love it. (4164 views) | | | Tasted by Loren Sonkin on 2/10/2013 flawed bottle: TN: Quintarelli, Dal Forno, Bussola, Caprai, Bea ++: This got 7 hours of breathing. very lightly corked, but TCA nonetheless. More noticeable on the palate - just not much there. Also on the nose as well. A shame, but the chef used this to cook. (5807 views) | | | Tasted by Chrisw97 on 9/1/2011 & rated 90 points: Initially out of the decanter typical hints of plum, raisin, menthol and liquorice but incredibly restrained. The transition to the palate and finish was short and you can definitely tell the difference to the Amarone which has more muscle, structure and back bone. Nonetheless at least for the nose this was enjoyable for the dinner we had. (5079 views) | | | Tasted by cardsandwine on 4/17/2011: I have had this wine on multiple occasions and it has yet to impress me. My recent bottle was decanted for 3 hours. Not much going on. Wine never opened. Weak bouquet and palate. In my humble opinion Dal Forno Amarones and Valpolicellos, while very expensive, are no match for those of Quintarelli. (4834 views) | | | Tasted by G_H on 2/7/2011 & rated 92 points: Beautiful ripe valpolicella, very sweet and balanced, long finish. This wine is really good however on a QPR scale it's not as fantastic as on an absolute basis... (3967 views) | | | Tasted by jordidahl on 10/31/2009 & rated 90 points: Deep red-violet. Just after decanting scents of tobacco, leather, earth and a green touch og pepper, unfortunately quite much alcohol in the nose, that remains in the glass even after 2-3 hours. Medium bodied, with nice fruit, quite pleasant tannins. Long aftertaste, quite nice balanced, the alcohol is not overwelming in the taste. Drinks well now, the evolution in the decanter was not positive, so i believe this wine should be consumed over the next 3-5 years. (4003 views) | | | Tasted by RossM on 12/24/2008 & rated 70 points: I'm not sure if this one was flawed or not, but it was impressively bad. VA was over the top, very little fruit and not enjoyable at all. I've had these wines in the past and they were nothing like this one. Too bad. (4266 views) | | | Tasted by Eric on 7/24/2008: A real crowd pleaser. Tar, violet and raspberry on the nose. Wonderfully energetic with great fruit and acidity, plenty of structure but definitely takes a backseat to the wonderful black fruit expression. Utterly delicious. (4311 views) | | | Tasted by Employee500 on 6/15/2008 & rated 93 points: Delicious Valpolicella...classic flavors but concentration is intense. Black cherry, blackberry and cassis. Rich and ripe. (3695 views) | | | Tasted by canan on 10/10/2007: A lot like the 98 but even more dense and powerful. A lot of fruit, mostly blackcurrant, with vanilla and freshly ground coffee. Still, it does have a long and rounded length with only a slight sweetness that doesn't dominate. Brutal but balanced, seems to capture my experience :-) (3946 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Richard Jennings
RJonWine.com (8/11/2007)
(Romano Dal Forno Valpolicella Superiore Vigneto di Monte Lodoletta) Concentrated plum, black fruit, mineral and sage palate; medium-plus finish 92+ pts. 92 points |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of RJonWine.com. (manage subscription channels) |
| Romano Dal Forno Producer WebsiteCorvina BlendPrimarily Corvina and Corvinone (45% to 95%), and Rondinella (5 to 30%). Sometimes includes Molinara, Oseleta, Negrara, Pelara, Spigamonti, etc, and, in small quantity, international red grapes allowed in the Valpolicella region.Italy Italian Wines (ItalianMade.com, The Italian Trade Commission) | Italian Wine Guide on the WineDoctorVeneto Credit to WineCountry.it for this article
History and Tradition
The first human settlements of the lagoon and the surrounding areas maintained a simple social structure until the arrival of the Romans in the second century B.C. who divided the land into parcels of about 4,800 square meters and distributed those tracts among the locals to be cultivated.
The Romans founded the cities of Verona, Vicenza, and Padova, and named what was then the 10th imperial region, Venetia. Both the Veneto region and the province of Venice (Venezia in Italian) derive their names from the original Latin name of the area. The precursor of the city of Venice that we know today was founded during the Middle Ages when the locals escaped the barbaric invasions that followed the decline of the Roman Empire by taking refuge in coastal areas, islands, and the lagoon’s marshland.
The Venetian trade routes that connected Europe with Asia brought great wealth and general prosperity to the region. In many provinces, especially around Treviso, mulberry cultivation and the breeding of silkworms imported from China brought more affluence and prestige to local residents. With money pouring in from all quarters, Venice began its great building projects, chief among them creating the lagoon and canal infrastructure and systems still enjoyed and used today.
Between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th centuries following the opening of the Suez Canal, Venice once again became an important port city. Foreign investment financed the creation of the industrial infrastructure of Porto Marghera and freed the port of Venice from the burden of commercial navigation. Improved communications technology has allowed the rest of Italy and the world beyond closer ties to Venice, and has contributed to making Venice into an incomparable tourist destination.
The long period of power and splendor that blessed Venice encouraged the highest quality creations by local artisans. The ongoing request for jewelry, precious fabrics, lace, glass, wood and ceramic products by the noble Venetians shaped the development of typical stores along the narrow calli (streets) of Venice as well as factories both inland and on the lagoon islands. Up to today, popular tourist destinations are the Murano and Burano islands, famed for their glasswork and needlepoint products.
The Wines
Veneto is among the foremost wine-producing regions, both for quality and quantity. The region counts over 20 DOC zones and a variety of sub-categories, many of its wines, both dry and Spumanti, are internationally known and appreciated.
The three most well known DOCs are Bardolino, from the town with the same name and surrounding the shores of Garda Lake, Valpolicella, and Soave. Other noteworthy wines produced here are the white Bianco di Custoza, the excellent sparkling Prosecco, the Breganze, and the Amarone (a rich and powerful red from the Verona province). If you travel to the Treviso area, look for the little-known Clinton, a wine that is banned from distribution because it does not conform to the DOC standards, but is produced in limited quantities for local consumption.
The importance of winemaking in this region is underscored by the creation in 1885 of the very first Italian school for vine growing and oenology. In addition, Veneto was the first region to constitute the first strada del vino or "wine road". This first wine-touring road featured special road signs providing information on vines and the wines they were made into and joined the Valdobbiadene and Conegliano DOC zones crossing a series of hilly vineyards.
The most appreciated wines in the region come from the provinces of Treviso, Verona, Padova, Venice, and Vicenza. The area around Verona, with its temperate climate and hilly surrounding, is believed to have cultivated grapes since the Bronze Age.Valpolicella Consorzio of Valpolicella
The Crus on weinlagen-info
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