Style
Appassimento
ah-pah-SEE-men-to
Wine from raisins, almost
Grapes dried on mats or in lofts before fermentation. The Veneto's method for Amarone and Recioto; also used in other Italian regions and beyond.
- dried cherry
- fig
- cocoa
- spice
- tea
Water leaves, everything else concentrates: sugar, acid, flavor, and the risk of rot. Recioto stays sweet; Amarone ferments dry. Ripasso is a second use of the skins.
The method is older than the marketing. Done well it is complexity; done for weight alone it is jam and heat.
Aged cheese, winter roasts, and small pours.
At the table
Service
61–64 °F (16–18 °C).
