Paolo Cottini · Valpolicella Classica · Veneto
Amarone della Valpolicella
Classico 2017 DOCG
Technical Details
The Wine
| Producer | Az. Agr. Paolo Cottini di Riolfi Sara |
| Appellation | Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOCG |
| Vintage | 2017 |
| Grape | 55% Corvina, 35% Corvinone, 10% Rondinella |
| ABV | 16% |
| Region | Valpolicella Classica, Veneto |
| Appassimento | 90–110 days in fruttai lofts |
| Fermentation | 35 days at 16–18°C (from Dec. 1) |
| Oak Aging | 12 mo. Slavonian oak (3,000 L) |
| Barrel Aging | 12 mo. French barriques |
| Bottle Aging | 12 months before release |
| Aging Trajectory | 15–20 years |
Critical Notes
The Glass
Falstaff
"Bright rich ruby; light bread, sourdough, blueberry, liquorice; hearty gripping tannin with sweet fruit texture."
Grandi Vini d’Italia · 2017 Vintage
"Remarkable clarity and precision in a medium-bodied, focused style. Suggestions of amarena cherries, menthol, spices and minerals emerge with air. One of the more accessible Amarones. Lithe structure. Overall balance beyond question."
The Vintage
2017: The Hottest Season Since 1994
The 2017 growing season in the Veneto was exceptional in its severity. Severe spring frosts reduced yields across the appellation. July and August brought record heat and a dry summer that concentrated fruit on the vine before a single grape was laid in the fruttai. By harvest, the Corvina and Corvinone clusters already carried deep, saturated color and substantial natural sugar.
The consequence for Amarone: the 2017 is a textbook powerful vintage. Deep, saturated colors. Substantial extract. Robust, mature tannins that arrived at the winery before 90 days of appassimento further concentrated them. Flavor profile leans toward the black fruit register, black cherry, baked plum, dried blackberry, raisin, sweet spice, earthiness. This is Amarone that demands the full respect of time: 15 to 20 years of cellaring trajectory for structured producers like Paolo Cottini.
The estate's Grandi Vini d'Italia note identifies something important about this particular bottling: despite the vintage’s power, the wine shows "remarkable clarity and precision in a medium-bodied, focused style", a counterintuitive elegance within what was an objectively massive year.
In the Cellar
From Fruttai to Bottle:
Three Years of Work
After 90 to 110 days of appassimento in the Cottini family's drying lofts, the concentrated grapes are crushed and fermented at 16–18°C for 35 days, a long maceration that extracts everything the shriveled skins have to offer. The ferment begins no earlier than December 1st, as DOCG rules require.
From there the wine spends 12 months in 3,000-litre Slavonian oak casks, large enough to limit oak influence while allowing controlled micro-oxidation, followed by 12 months in French barriques, where a measured dose of smaller-vessel complexity is added without overwhelming the Corvina character. A final 12 months in bottle before release brings the total time from harvest to shipment to approximately three years.
The resulting wine at 16% ABV carries the concentration its vintage and process demand. Decant 60 minutes before service to open the tannin and allow the secondary notes, dried herbs, amarena cherry, mineral depth, to emerge from behind the primary black fruit.
| Step 1 | Harvest (Sept–Oct) |
| Step 2 | Appassimento: 90–110 days in fruttai |
| Step 3 | Fermentation: 35 days at 16–18°C (from Dec. 1) |
| Step 4 | 12 mo. Slavonian oak (3,000 L casks) |
| Step 5 | 12 mo. French oak barriques (225 L) |
| Step 6 | 12 mo. bottle aging before release |
| Total | ~36 months from harvest to release |
At the Table
Food Pairings
Amarone at 16% ABV demands pairings with the structural weight to stand beside it. The 2017’s concentrated black fruit and robust tannins call for dishes with fat, protein, and umami depth. Delicate preparations are overwhelmed.
- Osso buco in white wine with gremolata, a Veneto region classic
- Venison with juniper, root vegetables, and wild berry reduction
- 36-month Parmigiano-Reggiano. The aged cheese meets the wine’s structure
- Brasato all’Amarone, short rib braised in Amarone (the obvious, perfect answer)
- Wild boar stew with polenta and braised greens
- Meditation wine, pour alone after dinner with aged Montasio
Service Recommendation
Decant 60 minutes before service. Serve at 18°C. The 2017’s robust tannins soften with air, allowing the amarena cherry, dried herbs, and mineral depth to surface. For cellar programs: this wine will not reach its full development until 2030 or beyond.
Dual Vintage Offering
2017 or 2018?
2017. For the Cellar
Power, structure, 15–20 year trajectory. Black cherry, baked plum, robust mature tannins. The classic structured Amarone that collectors recognise. Built for the cellar and special-occasion pours from 2030 onward.
2018. For Tonight
Elegance, higher acidity, red fruit. Cherry, pomegranate, herbal nuances. More food-friendly and approachable sooner. 10–15 year aging trajectory. The right-now Amarone for tables where the style is new or the occasion calls for something more immediate.
| 2017 | 2018 | |
| Structure | Powerful, tannic | Lighter, more elegant |
| Fruit | Black (baked plum, blackberry) | Red (cherry, pomegranate) |
| Acidity | Standard | Higher, fresher |
| Aging | 15–20 years | 10–15 years |
| Best for | Cellar & occasions | Right-now pours & near-term drinking |
| Score | Falstaff 91 | Falstaff 91 |
Why This Wine Matters
Amarone is the wine that people ask for by name and then discover they’ve been sold the wrong thing. Most of what lands on wine lists under the Amarone DOCG comes from the extended production zone, vineyards outside the original Classico heartland that were grafted onto the appellation when its commercial success became undeniable. Paolo Cottini is from the Classico zone. That distinction is on the label, and it matters.
The 2017 was the hottest Veneto growing season since 1994. The spring frost cut yields before a single leaf was hung in the drying loft. What survived was concentrated by the summer before Paolo’s family had dried a single grape. Ninety to 110 days of appassimento on top of that, then 35 days of fermentation, then three years of aging. The result is 16% ABV of classic, structured Amarone: black cherry, baked plum, robust tannins, a wine built for the next decade and a half.
Sara Riolfi is the registered legal owner of this estate. The business name is literally her name. That’s not a marketing position, it’s the commercial registration.
Trade Materials
English PDF Italiano PDF Espanol PDFAdd to Your Program
Classic-zone Amarone from a woman-led boutique estate. The 2017 is for your cellar program. Pair with the 2018 for a dual-vintage placement that covers both collector and ready-to-drink demand.
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