2023 Giuseppe Quintarelli “Cà del Merlo” Bianco Secco
The Amarone winery produces an exclusive white wine that combines dryness with aromatic and textural characteristics.
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Producer
Quintarelli
I have reviewed 16 wines from Quintarelli, from the 2009 to 2024 vintages, across Veneto, Amarone della Valpolicella, Valpolicella and others. Most are Corvina. Scores range from 92 to 99, averaging 96; the highest is the 2009 Giuseppe Quintarelli Amarone della Valpolicella Riserva (99 points). Quintarelli also features in one journal article on this site.
Giuseppe “Bepi” Quintarelli was the Maestro of the Veneto, a legend whose handwritten labels are recognized worldwide. His father Silvio founded the estate in 1924 on the eastern slope of the Negrar Valley, in the heart of Valpolicella Classico. Bepi’s patience defined a style of Amarone that became the reference point for the whole region, and his family — his daughter Fiorenza with her husband Giampaolo and their sons Francesco and Lorenzo — runs the estate by the same principles today.
The twelve hectares of vineyards sit on volcanic and limestone soils, farmed without chemicals and for low yields. Grapes for Amarone are dried for months before a long fermentation, and the wine rests for years in large Slavonian oak casks before release; the Riserva, made only in exceptional vintages, spends around a decade in wood. In difficult years there is no Amarone at all, and the fruit goes into Rosso del Bepi instead — a kind of self-control that has almost disappeared from the wine world.
The range is wider than people think. The Valpolicella Classico Superiore is essentially a baby Amarone, sleek rather than heavy: half the grapes are pressed straight away and half are dried for about two months, and the wine is then refermented on the Amarone lees. Alzero applies the drying method to Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot; Primofiore is the freshest, most immediate red; the Cà del Merlo Bianco Secco is one of the most singular whites in the Veneto; and Amabile del Cerè and the Recioto show the sweet side. Quintarelli’s Amarone is not a dessert wine: it is dry, structural and profound — the gold standard I measure the category against, and the wine that made me want to become a sommelier.
Wine Reviews for Quintarelli
Show 7 more reviews
- 2009 Giuseppe Quintarelli Amarone della Valpolicella Riserva99
- 2018 Quintarelli Valpolicella Classico Superiore97
- 2024 Giuseppe Quintarelli “Cà del Merlo” Bianco Secco94
- 2023 Giuseppe Quintarelli “Primofiore” Veneto93
- 2018 Giuseppe Quintarelli Amarone della Valpolicella Classico96
- 2017 Giuseppe Quintarelli “Alzero” Cabernet92
- 2016 Giuseppe Quintarelli Rosso del Bepi Veneto97
2022 Giuseppe Quintarelli “Primofiore” Veneto Rosso
An ideal introduction to the legendary Quintarelli estate, the 2022 “Primofiore” is a complex red that unfolds with layers of
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2017 Giuseppe Quintarelli “Cà del Merlo” Rosso
A single-vineyard bottling showing the elegant depth of the estate’s hillside fruit.
2017 Giuseppe Quintarelli “Amabile del Cerè” Bianco Veneto
Only in 375ml bottles as an off-dry late-harvest wine which comes in limited production. This is pure joy in a
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2017 Giuseppe Quintarelli Valpolicella Classico Superiore
The winemakers age this Valpolicella for seven years before adding Amarone lees for ripasso production. The soul of Valpolicella, redefined.
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2017 Giuseppe Quintarelli Amarone della Valpolicella Classico
A benchmark of the style. The wine spends eight years in oak barrels while waiting for the approval to receive
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2016 Giuseppe Quintarelli “Alzero” Cabernet
A cult classic—Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot made in the Amarone method. The wine delivers luxurious scents alongside exotic
2015 Giuseppe Quintarelli Recioto della Valpolicella Classico
This wine represents the estate’s first creation since its inception. This sweet dark wine offers endless layers which make it
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2015 Giuseppe Quintarelli Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva
This wine receives special production status only during exceptional grape harvests before spending ten years in barrel before release. Powerful,
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2009 Giuseppe Quintarelli Amarone della Valpolicella Riserva
This is the holy grail. The Riserva is only produced in the most exceptional vintages, aged for a mind-boggling decade
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