Masi Mazzano Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2015

The other great single vineyard here. The better, in my view. A looser soil of marl with ample volcanic content. Altitudinal in context (up to 400 metres), with little capacity for botrytis due to the brisk winds that ventilate the site while drying the ‘noble rot’ out. Pithy and firm. Cool of aura. Nettle and pine and that hallmark bitter cherry nobility. Yet it is the finish, a shimmer of tannic steel like the glint of a barrel, that makes this. A buffer against the teeming fruit, compressing the wine into a savoury sheath with nary a glimpse of sweetness. Drink or hold [into the early 2040s+]. Score – 96. (Ned Goodwin, MW, jamessuckling.com, May 9, 2023)