Allegrini Palazzo Della Torre

The Allegrini family estate comprises 120 hectares of vineyard in the heart of Valpolicella Classico. Although the family has grown grapes here for several centuries, Giovanni Allegrini was the first to start bottling wines from the family’s vineyards. When he died in 1983, he passed his passion and commitment to quality winemaking onto his three children, Walter, Marilisa and Franco. Together, they worked to build on Giovanni’s quality ethos until Walter’s death in 2003. Franco looked after the vineyards and winemaking, while Marilisa continued to manage sales and marketing. From the 2007 vintage, Franco sacrificed the Valpolicella Classico classification by bottling the Allegrini wines under Stelvin to eliminate cork taint and reduce oxidation problems. Franco sadly passed away in 2022. He was an inspiring figure who led the way in Valpolicella’s quest for quality, forging a path many others have followed. In 2023, Franco’s sons Francesco, Giovanni and Matteo, alongside their cousin Silvia Allegrini (Walter’s daughter), became custodians of their family’s historic estate.

Corvina, Corvione, Rondinella, Oseleta

Palazzo della Torre covers 26 hectares of east-facing vineyards planted between 1962 and 1989, situated between 450m and 520m above sea level. Vines are trained using the Guyot system and planted at a density of 3,000 vines per hectare. The entire area is terraced by traditional dry-stone walling called ‘marogne’ in local dialect, a highly characteristic example of rural architecture. The subsoil is primarily composed of marly limestone that encourages the concentration of sugars in the grapes while maintaining a good level of acidity.

Allegrini uses the modern version of the traditional 'ripasso' technique for Palazzo della Torre, drying a proportion of the grapes in the 'Terre di Fumane' drying centre to intensify the character of this vineyard. The fresh grapes were destemmed and pressed immediately after harvest while the dried grapes underwent the same process later in the year. Fermentation took place in temperature controlled stainless-steel tanks. The wine was then aged in second-use oak barriques before being blended together for two months and bottle aged for seven months before release.

On the nose, this wine reveals distinct notes of berries, aromatic herbs, spices and vanilla. The textured palate is underpinned by sweet, polished tannins that linger on the long and intriguing finish.