Allegrini La Poja 2018

Allegrini La Poja

Region: Valpolicella, Veneto, Italy

Vintage: 2018

Bottle size: 75cl

Grape: Corvina

ABV: 14%

After more than four years ageing, the wine is still extraordinarily fresh and crisp with a full spectrum of aromas, ranging from blackcurrant and cherry, to liquorice, vanilla and smoky tobacco notes, which develop on the palate. Full bodied and elegant, framed by taut tannins the wine has a long, lingering finish.

Located at the top of La Grola, Sant'Ambrogio di Valpolicella, 320 metres above sea level, the vineyard comprises 2.65 hectares planted in 1979 by Giovanni Allegrini with a south-east exposure. The soil is well drained, calcareous (78.5% chalk) and stony. Soils are marginally alkaline and combine with the active limestone content to reduce the vines' vigour. The vines are double Guyot trained at a density of approximately 4,240 vines per hectare.

The grapes were hand harvested at the beginning of October, destemmed and crushed with maceration lasting 12-15 days with regular, daily pumping over. Fermentation took place in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks between 22-31ºC with malolactic fermentation occurring naturally in November. The wine was then racked into new French oak barriques for a minimum of 20 months, followed by eight months in large Slavonian oak casks. The wine was left to age in the bottle for an additional 10 months.

The Allegrini family estate comprises 120 hectares of vineyard in the heart of Valpolicella Classico. Although the family has grown grapes here for several centuries, Giovanni Allegrini was the first to start bottling wines from the family’s vineyards. When he died in 1983, he passed his passion and commitment to quality winemaking onto his three children, Walter, Marilisa and Franco. Together, they worked to build on Giovanni’s quality ethos until Walter’s death in 2003. Franco looked after the vineyards and winemaking, while Marilisa continued to manage sales and marketing. From the 2007 vintage, Franco sacrificed the Valpolicella Classico classification by bottling the Allegrini wines under Stelvin to eliminate cork taint and reduce oxidation problems. He was an inspiring figure who led the way in Valpolicella’s quest for quality, forging a path many others have followed. In 2023, Franco’s sons Francesco, Giovanni and Matteo, alongside their cousin Silvia Allegrini (Walter’s daughter), became custodians of their family’s historic estate.

https://allegrini.it