Description
We have been the happy recipients of Giuseppe Quintarelli allocations ever since we opened the store in 2003. While we covet their spectacular Valpolicella and Ca del Merlo bottlings which are aged for EIGHT years before release (more than twice as long as the required minimum), we also love Quintarelli's Primofiore (First Flower) which is still aged for three or four years and intended for earlier consumption. Unlike with its big brothers which go through the extra drying and extraction process of Ripasso, only a portion of the Cabernet Sauvignon is partially dried and the remaining Cabernet Franc, Corvina and Corvinone grapes are 'freshly pressed'. The end result is a wine with less sweeter toned fruit yet still with great concentration, a correspondingly lighter body and perhaps a bit more structure with the increased percentage of the Bordeaux varietals. It is by no means a 'lesser' wine and continues to speak of the legendary Quintarelli terroir with equal aplomb.
