90 Joaquín Hidalgo - Vinous Media

The 2022 Garnacha Veraton Garnacha from Campo de Borja aged primarily 80% in new French and American oak. This is dominated by the barrel aging, with a nose of vanilla, sandalwood, red fruit candy and rose perfume. Creamy and structured, with acidity in line with the style, this is a rich, vigorous red in which the 16% alcohol is well integrated. It only really appears on the finish along with hints of hay.

89 Wine Enthusiast

"Crisp, dry and full of red-currant fruits and tight acidity, this is a delicious, young Champagne. It is textured and zesty, with layer of acidity vying with the perfumed fruit. This bottling really should age, so drink it from 2019."

93 James Suckling - Jamessuckling.com

Bright aromas of flowers, cedar and currants follow through to a medium to full body. Slight, silky tannins that give the wine beautiful form and length. Better in 2021 when the wine comes together..February/2018

91 Wine Spectator

A slight honeyed note to the candied lemon peel and yellow plum flavors imparts a richness to this white, which is a lush style for sure, with chamomile and straw notes chiming in. A tug of bitter tannins brings form and balance to the long finish, graced by a salted almond note. Drink now through 2030. 1,999 cases imported.

96 Wine Enthusiast

This is a glorious icewine where acidity and sugar are in perfect harmony. The candied orange peel, ginger, straw and toasted walnut and straw are a mere preview of what's to come. These intense flavors of apricot jam, pumpkin pie and lemon drops are matched by electric acidity. Enjoy now until 2035. #65 ON THE Top 100 Cellar Selections 2023

95 Owen Bargreen - OwenBargreen.com

This beautiful 2021 Icewine has a whopping 380G/L residual sugar. Papaya and roasted pineapple alongside juicy peach and hints of bananas foster on the palate. The tension of the wine as well as weight really drives things forward. Beautiful now, this will live on for another twenty plus years to come.

92 Wine Advocate - Wine Advocate

The 2021 Riesling Ice Wine is unoaked and comes in with 219 grams of residual sugar, 10.2 of total acidity and 9.5% alcohol. This is from a year that the winery calls "one of the most challenging harvests on record," due to rainfall around harvest time by table wine standards. The Riesling harvest was a couple of months later, in early January 2022. A strict selection caused lower quantities to be produced, although the winery says with "high quality." Indeed, this seems fresh and lively, with a surprisingly perky feel and a juicy finish. It's on the elegant side this year, not necessarily a bad thing, but it still tastes great. It has the freshness to allow it to age well, so there is no rush. I loved the tangy finish. If you must drink it young, you'll get waves of peaches and apricots (leaning more to peach this year), and it will taste great. Best After 2022

93 Antonio Galloni - Vinous

The 2021 Chardonnay Bentrock opens with striking, expansive aromatics. There's a bit more new oak here, and that also comes through. Orchard fruit, mint, white flowers, white pepper and pear all open with some coaxing. I especially admire the wine's inner sweetness. All the 2021 needs is a bit of time to emerge. <

90 Wine Spectator

"This shows good grip, derived from the burly tannins and snappy sun-dried fruitlike acidity, layering dark, ripe berry and black cherry fruit with hints of tobacco and cigar box. Drink now through 2023. 800 cases made." 90 Wine Spectator

WINE:
"From mid September to mid October-Withering for two months in the drying room at 450m height. De-stemming and soft pressing, maceration and fermentation for 15 days in vertical tanks. Delestage, followed by a Malolactic fermentation for 2/3 in Tonneaux of 500 liters and for 1/3 in Barrique." -Importer

ESTATE:
"The story of La Formica began in 1893 with the construction of a small shrine dedicated to St. Vincent Ferrer to protect his 26 ha of vineyards below. Today, over a century later, the vines continue to thrive in the Cellore d Illasi and neighboring terroitory of Tregnano, at the easternmost extremities of the Valpolicella appellation. The typical Scaglia Bianca soil, along with the average altitude of 320m asl, and the Eastern exposure define the style of these wines: vibrant fruit, powerful, and always elegant." -Importer

AMARONE PROCESS:
"Grapes are harvested ripe in the first two weeks of October, by carefully choosing bunches having fruits not too close to each other, to let the air flow. Grapes are allowed to dry, traditionally on straw mats. This process is called appassimento or rasinate (to dry and shrivel) in Italian. This concentrates the remaining sugars and flavours and is similar to the production of French Vin de Paille. The pomace left over from pressing off the Amarone is used in the production of Ripasso Valpolicellas."

"Modern Amarone is now produced in special drying chambers under controlled conditions. This new approach minimizes the amount of handling that the grapes go through and helps prevent the onset of Botrytis cinerea. In Amarone, the quality of the grape skin is a primary concern as that component brings the tannins, color and intensity of flavor to the wine. The process of desiccation not only concentrates the juices within the grape but also increases the skin contact of the grapes. The drying process further metabolizes the acids within the grape and creates a polymerization of the tannins in the skin which contribute to the overall balance of the finished wine."

"The length of the drying process is typically 120 days but varies according to producer and the quality of the harvest. The most evident consequence of this process is the loss of weight: 35 to 45% for Corvina grapes, 30 to 40% for Molinara and 27 to 40% for Rondinella. Following drying, end of January/beginning of February, the grapes are crushed and go through a dry low temperature fermentation process which can last up to 30/50 days. The reduced water content can slow down the fermentation process, increasing the risk of spoilage and potential wine faults such as high volatile acidity. After fermentation, the wine is then aged in barriques made from either French, Slovenian or Slavonian oak." -Jancis Robinson - Oxford Companion to Wine