2003 Zyme Amarone della Valpolicella

(92 Points) The 2003 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico reveals gorgeous density and purity in its fruit. Sweet menthol, flowers and minerals emerge with air, adding considerable complexity to the dark fruit. The wine boasts superb balance and the French oak is integrated very nicely, even if the tannins dry out slightly on the finish. This medium-bodied yet sumptuous Amarone is all about clarity and precision. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2021.

Proprietor Celestino Gaspari boasts one of the most extensive resumes in Valpolicella. Once widely considered the heir-apparent at Quintarelli, where he worked for a number of years, Gaspari subsequently consulted for a number of local wineries, helping launch some of the most exciting young properties on the scene. More recently Gaspari has scaled back his consulting activities to focus on his own project. The dramatic Zyme cellars are carved out of rock and hold some of the most dramatic wines being made in Veneto today. Zyme is still a young property, and I am curious to see what happens here over the coming years. Gaspari is highly ambitious and technically very proficient, as these wines clearly show. The open question is whether he will allow the wines to express more personality over the coming years. Given his track record elsewhere, there is every reason to think that will indeed be the case. There is a very clear struggle here in trying to acknowledge tradition on one hand, while not being excessively bound by convention on the other hand. As a result, the top wine here is not Amarone, but Harlequin, a blend of various grapes given a short time of air-drying and aged in 100% new French oak. All of these wines required considerable aeration for some of the SO2 to blow off. eRobertParker.com #185, Oct 2009