Masi - Costasera Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2020

Masi is one of the leading producers of Amarone in Valpolicella, which is one of the finest Italian wine production zones, stretching from Verona to Lake Garda. The name of the company comes from Vaio dei Masi, the small valley purchased by the Boscaini family in 1772, still in family hands. Masi has expanded over the years with vineyards purchased in the best historical production sites in the Venetian regions. Masi also manages the historic castello belonging to the Conti Serego Alighieri, the noble house descended from Dante the famous Florentine poet, whose family members have lived in Valpolicella since 1353.

Masi has recognized expertise in the appassimento technique, as practised in the region since the time of the Ancient Romans. Grapes are laid out to dry for the winter months on typical bamboo racks called arele in drying rooms. This concentrates their colour, sugars and tannins. The result is a wine called Amarone, which is confident, majestic, complex and exuberant.

Today, Masi produces five different Amarones, the widest and most qualified range on the international market. Costasera is its flagship wine and a benchmark in the Amarone category. Amarone, together with Barolo and Brunello, are considered to be Italy’s finest red wines. With its heft, subtlety, and depth, Amarone is called a “meditation wine”.

Masi has a strong commitment to sustainability, including doing pioneering work in grape development. Thus, Masi has a strong preference for working with native Venetian grape varieties, including the most important ones in Valpolicella: Corvina, Rondinella, and Molinara. Additionally, the Masi Technical Group has been working with 48 native grape varieties, some of them almost forgotten. The most interesting grape coming out of this research is Oseleta, one of Verona’s most ancient varieties, rediscovered by Masi in the 1980s. The vine produces small, compact bunches with a high content of polyphenols and tannins. Adding Oseleta gives the wine extraordinary complexity, structure, colour, tannin content, and concentration. Pinot Grigio, Refosco, Garganega, Glera, Marzemino, and Teroldego are the other native varieties that are principally used in producing Masi wines.

The Boscaini family is still at the helm of Masi: Sandro Boscaini, its current president, is the sixth generation of a family that have elevated the international profile with Amarone. For his work, Sandro was recognized as a Cavalier del Lavoro by the President of Italy.