90 Points Vinous
The 2017 Valpolicella Classico Superiore Ripasso Ca’ del Laito impresses with its lift and grace, as autumnal spiced cherry-berry fruits are complemented by hints of sweet oak. This is silky and elegant with ripe red and black berries that coast along a vibrant core of acids, as hints of dark chocolate and clove come forward toward the close. It’s long yet very soft and nuanced through the finale, leaving just a hint of lavender to linger. This is a balanced effort for the vintage, yet I find myself craving more depth.
 
Winemaker Notes
The Ca' del Laito bottling is sourced from a range of vineyards in the area of Montecchio di Negrar. The grapes are picked and selected during the first and the second week of October. It’s immediately pressed and put in steel tanks where indigenous yeasts naturally start the fermentation after 24h. For the next 15 days they’re kept with their skins and pumping-overs are performed. After the fermentation is completed, the wine is moved to a stainless-steel tank where it’s left for 6 months. In April, after the Amarone is racked off, the Valpolicella Classico is put with the skins of Amarone where a second fermentation begins which will last 15 days. During this time several pumping-overs and skins submersions are performed until this second fermentation is also completed. The Ripasso is then moved to a steel tank where its gross lees is decanted off. After 10 days it is racked off in wooden barrels where the fermentation and aging are finished. AGING 24 months of aging 30% in 500 l tonneaux trice used 25% in 225 l barriques trice used 45% in 25 Hl barrels BOTTLING The Valpolicella Ripasso Classico Superiore “Cà del Laito” is bottled after 3 years of aging, and it stays 2 months in bottle before being sold. The production amounts to about 40.000 bottles.