2004 Giuseppe Quintarelli Recioto della Valpolicella Classico

"Valpolicella's magician." "The master of the Veneto." "The patriarch of Amarone." "The traditionalist." Not bad for a winemaker who simply follows the winemaking customs of his forefathers. Giuseppe Quintarelli's hand-written labels are easy to recognize and his wines fit the idiosyncratic style. Since 1924, his family has made wine from grapes grown on steep slopes on the outskirts of Negrar. For his highly-regarded Amarone, he still dries the grapes in an attic room, ages the wine for years in large Slavenian casks, and holds the wines from release until he is sure of their readiness. His magic has worked, as he has turned some of Veneto's most traditional wines into luxury icons.