2016 Musella, Amarone della Valpolicella Riserva

Amarone della Valpolicella is for lovers of the richest, ripest red wines of the world. And while it can be enjoyed in the proper setting all year round, it’s clear that the holidays are the sweet spot for sharing these unique rarities. Amarone, as voluptuously epitomized by today’s 2016 Riserva from Musella, is some seriously rich, heady stuff. The classic spot for it is with a cheese course, but lovers of big reds would welcome this one with a meaty braise or roast. It’s a big wine, yes, but not so massive as to knock it out of main-course contention. Balance, of course, is critical: The measure of a great Amarone is not whether it is impressive but whether it’s enjoyable. And like all great wines vintage and age matter, and that’s why this eight year old masterpiece from the excellent 2016 vintage is such a stunner. Amarone is an expensive category of wine by nature: to make it, producers dry their grapes for several months after harvest to concentrate their sugars and produce a ric