2022 Rubinelli Vajol Valpolicella Classico Veneto

Rubinelli Vajol has been producing wine in the heart of Valpolicella Classico since 1635 — nearly four centuries of family continuity in one of Veneto's most storied red-wine zones. The estate was founded by Gaetano Rubinelli, the patriarch who built the Chievo Dam along the River Adige and rooted his family in Valpolicella for generations. The winery still faces the estate vines that supply this cuvee.

Valpolicella Classico is the original heartland — the hillside zone where Corvina, the region's signature grape, shows its brightest cherry fruit and most energetic acidity. This 2022 bottling is built on 45% Corvina, blended with native varietals that add structure and spice. The result is a wine that punches well above its price — delivering the depth and complexity you'd expect from bottles costing twice as much.

In the glass: strong ruby red, immediate aromas of sour cherry and red fruit with floral lift and pleasant hints of spice. The palate is strong, tannic, clean and elegant — ripe cherry, prune, blackberry — with a spice component of pepper, sweet spices, tamarind, cinchona, and vanilla. Well balanced, fruity, and built to drink now or cellar for a few years.

Named Winery of the Year in 2023 by Wine Magazine. The kind of wine that makes grocery-store reds taste emotionally vacant.