Vinitaly trip - the Dal Forno visit

Last year, I never ended up writing about one of the high points of our trip, but it's just as well, because it was even better this year. Romano dal Forno is one of the iconic producers in Italy, and among lovers of Amarone he is a legend. My parents have been fortunate to have visited dal Forno on several occassions over the past several years, and this was just one more chapter.

Friday afternoon, Dad, Megan, and I arrived at the winery, which is also the family's home in Ilasi, about 40 minutes outside Verona. As with last year, Romano's son Michele was there to welcome us and lead us on our visit. After a quick look at the latest progress on their facilities including the fermenting tanks, we proceeded down to the cellar.

Michele showed us various vintages still in barrel as we made our way down to the lowest level where the wines we would taste were still aging. First up was the 2006 Valpolicella, which is already deep, rich, and voluptuous. Dal Forno now puts his Valpolicella through a short drying process before aging in small American oak barrels, so the wine is really baby Amarone. We discussed with Michele whether or not the treatment of new American oak is really the best, and he told us that it is something they have been discussing and considering altering. The barrel samples do show plenty of oak of course, but I do not have enough experience with their wines in bottle to say whether or not dialing back the oak a bit may be beneficial. Perhaps for a Valpolicella that many people will not want to wait too long for, it may be an option.

Next up was the 2006 Amarone. This wine is just a stunner - it is so full and rich, but also so very young and tannic as it is still in barrel. Without a doubt though, all of the raw material is there, and I imagine this will be a truly amazing wine once it is in bottle. Hopefully I will get a chance to taste it again many years from now.

Our tasting complete, we went back upstairs into the house to chat, and were joined by Michele's mother and his infant nephew (his younger brother is the first of the three dal Forno sons to have child, so their mother is of course quite exited to have her first grandchild around). Soon after, Romano himself finally came in to join us, taking a break from his busy day. Though we were expecting to leave soon, we ended up spending a good hour talking with the family, discussing not just wine, but the economy, a little politics, and just our lives in general. It was really a wonderful afternoon spent with a wonderful family.

Dad always likes to bring a small gift to them as well, and this year Michele was as always grateful to see the small pruning shears and pin-sized LED flashlight. In exchange, Romano felt compelled to offer us something as well, a true treat. Michele stepped out and returned with 2 bottles of the family's own olive oil, as well as a grappa produced by their neighbor from the dal Forno grapes. It was a scene similar to something we have experienced with our own family in Greece over the years, and just an incredible gesture on their part.

For me, this afternoon was just a wonderful experience. The dal Forno family has been so friendly over the past several years, and visiting with them is like seeing family. The fact that Romano is a legendary figure in the wine world is just amazing, as he is very down to earth. To him, the biggest reason he strives to make his wines be the best is not for any accolades, but because every bottle has his name on it, and he could not imagine something with his name being anything but the best he can make it. This drive, and the passion that Romano and his sons show in their product is what really takes these wines to another level. I just cannot say enough great things about our visit to the dal Forno home, and look forward to visiting with them again whenever we can.