2017 Speri Valpolicella Classico Superiore "Ripasso" DOC Veneto Italy 750 ml

Ripasso is the perfect red wine for winter: Unctuous and deep with a combination of fresh and dried red fruit, purple flowers, and a dizzying array of spices, no other wine on the planet undergoes this unique process, which yields wines with an unmatched combination of complexity and wallet-friendliness. A taste of the 2017 Speri, a glowing value red from one of the region’s top Amarone producers, and we know you’ll be hooked too. (So file this email so you can re-read the backstory with Speri’s 2017 in your glass.)

Tucked into a trio of north-south valleys tumbling side by side out of the southern edge of the Alps, the Valpolicella Classico appellation responsible for this wine benefits from the climate-tempering of Lake Garda next door. In fact, from the Speri vineyards you can see the calm waters of this large lake. The proximity of the lake keeps these three valleys a little bit warmer and lends the hillsides breezy conditions in autumn. The organically farmed Speri vineyards, are trained in pergolas taller than a man, all the better to capture those drafts.

The Speri family have been making top wines in these hills for seven generations, and their 2017 Ripasso is a stunner. James Suckling loved the 2017, calling it “very pretty,” and “pure.” We call it soul-warming: The shimmering, glass-coating red opens with a very fresh nose of warm ripe berries, blackberry, smashed raspberry, dark cherry, and sweet orange peel. The fruit profile shows polish and finesse in spades, accented by rosemary, cocoa powder, baking spices, and dried tobacco. It’s a benchmark for the category that demands sip after sip.

The ripasso winemaking process that inspires book-length, glowing tasting notes is rare, and from Speri all the more so: Not only are the family’s 60 hectares of vineyards ideally situated and organically farmed, but the Speris are one of the oldest families in Valpolicella winemaking, having got their start here in 1874. Over the last century and a half they have worked tirelessly to identify the clones of Corvina, etc. that offer the most complex aromatic profile, making their vine material some of the most interesting in the Veneto.

The Speris regularly take home the top awards from Gambero Rosso, Italy’s renowned wine publication. Their Ripasso is always a favorite, as is their flagship Amarone. That’s not a coincidence because the first step to making a great Ripasso is making a great Amarone. As always, that process starts in the vineyard, and Speri’s holdings are ideal, positioned high on the hillsides of the best part of Valpolicella. In this eastern part of Valpolicella volcanic soils mingle with sedimentary and glacial deposits for some truly fascinating terroir for the local varieties, Corvina, Rondinella, and Molinara. 

The Speris harvest in several passes, selecting first for Amarone, where not-quite ripe grapes with thicker skins in looser clusters are needed. Choosing grapes that are 90-95% ripe rather than 100 lets them ripen the rest of the way while they’re drying for about 100 days on straw mats in a dedicated grape-drying barn. If they had been fully ripe at picking, they could instead develop mold during that time. 

During this drying period, the grapes not only achieve ripeness, but they lose volume (by at least 50%), giving more depth and concentration to the juice remaining in the grapes. Importantly, some really interesting secondary flavors of nuts, coffee, and chocolate also develop during this period that you don’t get without the drying process. Then the raisins are pressed and made into wine, continuing a tradition of dried-grape winemaking in Valpolicella dating back to the 6th century AD.

The math on Amarone breaks down to: extra steps + less juice = Amarone’s high price tag. But that’s where Ripasso comes in. Once the Amarone grapes are squared away in the drying barn, the rest of the grapes are picked at full ripeness and made into a light, juicy, refreshing red wine, the basic Valpolicella. But some of that Valpolicella then gets a second fermentation when the Amarone lees (skins and yeast leftover from fermentation) are added to it at the time of putting the Amarone into barrel. 

This is where Ripasso gets its name, as it is “passed back over” the Amarone lees. Over the course of two or three weeks, this second fermentation adds roundness and a degree or two of alcohol. Most crucially, it imparts some of that rich Amarone depth and extra flavor spectrum to your wine, but none the Amarone premium when it comes to price.

Like most Italian producers, the Speris sold their wine in bulk for decades, but in 1958 they began to bottle. Thirty years ago, they were central in crafting the definition of Amarone as a DOCG. Today, they are busy crafting some of the most delicious bottles of “baby Amarone” that we get, and at a great price. Grab some today for your winter roasts and braises and don’t forget to let it have half an hour in the decanter.