2021 Valpolicella Ripasso Superiore, Corte Lavel, Marion
Valpolicella, Veneto, Italy
Marion’s 2021 Corte Lavel Valpolicella Ripasso Superiore is Valpolicella with extra depth, but still the estate’s trademark freshness and lift. It opens with black cherry, blueberry, raspberry, dried violet, sweet spice and a lovely woodland note of moss, earth and herbs. There is richness here, but it never feels heavy or overworked.
On the palate, it is plush, rounded and savoury, with dark berry fruit wrapped in smooth tannins and a chalky mineral edge. The Ripasso method brings more colour, body and gentle sweetness of fruit, while the wine keeps the brightness that makes Valpolicella so useful at the table. A generous, quietly serious red with polish, charm and enough structure for proper food.
For when
A cosy Italian dinner needs something richer than Valpolicella, but fresher than Amarone.
Pairs with
Wild boar ragù, roast pork, grilled sausages, mushroom risotto, braised beef, roast lamb, hard cheeses, salami or aubergine parmigiana.
Marion is one of Valpolicella’s most admired small family estates, run by Stefano and Nicoletta Campedelli in the Marcellise valley east of Verona. Corte Lavel is a particularly characterful part of the story, giving a Ripasso that feels full and mineral, with the kind of dark fruit, earth and soft herbal complexity that makes Marion’s wines so quietly compelling.
Whats in the bottle
Corvina, Rondinella