Italy · Valpolicella & Bardolino (Verona hills)

Cantine di Verona s.c.a.

A Veneto cooperative formed in 2021 from the merger of Cantina Valpantena, Cantina di Custoza, and Cantina Colli Morenici, spanning Valpolicella and Lake Garda with 1,800 hectares. Premium Lucia De Maio label covers Amarone DOCG and Ripasso DOC made from appassimento-dried Corvina, Corvinone, and Rondinella.

The producer

In 2021, Cantine di Verona s.c.a. was born from the merger of Cantina Valpantena, Cantina di Custoza, and Cantina Colli Morenici. Cantine di Verona s.c.a. manages approximately 1,800 hectares of vines across Valpolicella and Lake Garda.

The cooperative's premium tier, Lucia De Maio, is where its most considered winemaking is visible. The Amarone is built on 100 to 120 days of post-harvest appassimento drying in ventilated fruttai, concentrating the Corvina, Corvinone, and Rondinella blend before fermentation begins. Barrel aging in large Slavonian oak and French tonneaux runs for 24 to 30 months. The Ripasso, one step below, repasses Valpolicella wine over Amarone skins to add body and dried-fruit character while keeping the profile silky and approachable. Annual production reaches approximately 800,000 nine-liter cases. The cooperative holds Equalitas certification.

Known for

Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG via extended appassimento drying and aging in large Slavonian oak barrels and French tonneaux.

Notable facts

The story

The 2021 Merger

In 2021, Cantine di Verona s.c.a. was born from the merger of three wineries, Cantina Valpantena, Cantina di Custoza, and Cantina Colli Morenici. The cooperative manages approximately 1,800 hectares of vineyards across the Valpolicella and Lake Garda zones. Its Lucia De Maio Amarone uses grapes dried in ventilated lofts for 100 to 120 days before maceration and fermentation, followed by 24 to 30 months of aging in large Slavonian oak barrels and French tonneaux.

From the atlas

Cantine di Verona s.c.a.

At A Glance

Type: Cooperative winery Country: Italy Region: Veneto Appellations: Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG, Valpolicella Ripasso DOC, Custoza DOC Grapes: Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella Scale: 1,800 hectares, approximately 800,000 cases annually Certifications: Equalitas Premium label: Lucia De Maio

The Producer

In 2021, Cantine di Verona s.c.a. was born from the merger of three wineries, Cantina Valpantena, Cantina di Custoza, and Cantina Colli Morenici. Cantine di Verona s.c.a. manages approximately 1,800 hectares of vineyards across the Valpolicella and Lake Garda zones.

The scale is large. Annual production runs to approximately 800,000 nine-liter cases. The Lucia De Maio label, the cooperative's premium tier, uses appassimento-dried Corvina for Amarone, extended Slavonian oak aging, and a Ripasso made from the same core varieties with a silkier, more accessible profile.

Place

The Valpolicella zone sits in the hills northeast of Verona, where basalt, limestone, and clay soils support the red grape varieties that define the region. Corvina is the dominant grape, grown on terraced hillside plots at elevations that slow ripening and preserve acidity. Lucia De Maio Amarone and Ripasso are made from Corvina, Corvinone, and Rondinella in varying ratios.

To the west, the Lake Garda shoreline produces a different wine entirely. Custoza DOC is white wine territory, produced on soils shaped by glacial moraine that moderate temperature and extend the growing season. The lake moderates temperature and extends the growing season. Custoza remains part of the cooperative's regional wine range.

Soil And Site

The Valpolicella vineyards run across hillside terraces in soils that support the region's red grape varieties. The terraced topography is essential: it controls drainage, concentrates heat during the day, and allows the cool air drainage at night that keeps Corvina from over-ripening. These thermal swings are what make Valpolicella grapes viable for appassimento. Grapes that ripen unevenly or lose acidity too quickly cannot tolerate four months of post-harvest drying.

The Lake Garda parcels sit on glacial moraine soils with good drainage and mineral content that expresses differently in white varieties than the volcanic and clay soils of Valpolicella do in Corvina.

Story

In 2021, Cantine di Verona s.c.a. was born from the merger of three wineries, Cantina Valpantena, Cantina di Custoza, and Cantina Colli Morenici. Cantina di Custoza represented the Lake Garda white wine range. Cantina Colli Morenici brought the morainic terroir of the southern Garda hills.

The cooperative holds Equalitas certification. The Lucia De Maio range includes Amarone and Ripasso wines.

Vineyards And Cellar

The cooperative manages approximately 1,800 hectares of vineyards across the Valpolicella and Garda zones. Member growers bring their harvests to the cooperative for vinification, and the cooperative's cellar team makes the final decisions on blending, drying protocol, and barrel selection for each tier.

For the Lucia De Maio Amarone, the process begins at harvest with selective picking of Corvina, Corvinone, and Rondinella. The grapes move to ventilated lofts, the fruttai, where they dry for 100 to 120 days. During this period, water evaporates from the berry, concentrating sugars, acids, and aromatic compounds. By the time the dried fruit reaches the fermentation vessel, the grape has already become something different from what was picked: denser, sweeter, with a different aromatic profile than fresh Corvina. Fermentation runs slowly on this concentrated material, pushing alcohol to 15 percent.

Barrel aging follows for 24 to 30 months in large Slavonian oak barrels and French tonneaux. The Slavonian oak contributes tannin integration without the heavy vanilla character of smaller new barrels. The French tonneaux add a lighter oak influence. Together, the two formats round the wine's edges without flattening the dried-fruit concentration.

Wines

The Lucia De Maio Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG is the top of the range. The 2022 vintage uses 70 percent Corvina, 15 percent Corvinone, and 10 percent Rondinella, bottled at 15 percent alcohol after 100 to 120 days of appassimento drying and 24 to 30 months of barrel aging. This is a wine built for time: optimal between five and eight years from harvest, with aging potential through 15 to 20 years.

The Lucia De Maio Ripasso DOC sits one step below. The 2023 uses 70 percent Corvina, 15 percent Corvinone, and 15 percent Rondinella. Ripasso refers to a specific winemaking method: Valpolicella wine is repassed over the pressed skins of Amarone, which triggers a secondary fermentation and adds body, color, and dried-fruit character to what began as a lighter red. The wine has medium body, silky texture, and bright acidity, carrying flavors of cherry, ripe strawberry, blood orange, cinnamon, sage, and oak. Softer tannins than Amarone, lower alcohol, and a more approachable profile make it a practical entry into the Valpolicella hierarchy.

Custoza DOC, from the Lake Garda parcels, is a white wine expression on morainic soils.

In The Glass

The Lucia De Maio Amarone 2022 comprises 70 percent Corvina, 15 percent Corvinone, and 10 percent Rondinella at 15 percent alcohol. The grapes dry in ventilated lofts for 100 to 120 days before maceration and fermentation. The wine ages 24 to 30 months in large Slavonian oak barrels and French tonneaux.

The Ripasso is lighter and more immediate. Cherry and ripe strawberry lead, with blood orange and a dusting of cinnamon giving the mid-palate some complexity. Bright acidity keeps the wine from feeling heavy despite the secondary fermentation richness, and the soft tannins resolve cleanly. It drinks well with two to four years of bottle age, though it is accessible much earlier.

A Bottle To Understand It

The Lucia De Maio Ripasso DOC 2023 is made from 70 percent Corvina, 15 percent Corvinone, and 15 percent Rondinella. It makes the cooperative's winemaking logic accessible before committing to the patience that Amarone requires. The Ripasso method produces a wine that already shows the dried-fruit character of the Valpolicella hierarchy, specifically the concentrated cherry and spice of Corvina after contact with Amarone skins, without the density or the ten-year cellaring arc of the full Amarone. Medium body, silky texture, bright acidity, soft tannins, and a flavor range that covers cherry, strawberry, blood orange, cinnamon, and sage.

Anecdote

In 2021, Cantine di Verona s.c.a. was born from the merger of three wineries, Cantina Valpantena, Cantina di Custoza, and Cantina Colli Morenici. The cooperative manages approximately 1,800 hectares of vineyards across the Valpolicella and Lake Garda zones. Its Lucia De Maio Amarone uses grapes dried in ventilated lofts for 100 to 120 days before maceration and fermentation, followed by 24 to 30 months of aging in large Slavonian oak barrels and French tonneaux.

Final Word

Cantine di Verona s.c.a. is a cooperative with approximately 1,800 hectares, formed in 2021 from the merger of Cantina Valpantena, Cantina di Custoza, and Cantina Colli Morenici. The Lucia De Maio label is where that scale produces its most deliberate wines. The Amarone is built on a four-month drying process and nearly three years of barrel aging. The Ripasso offers the same Corvina-dominant logic in a wine that is ready sooner. The Amarone and Ripasso both use Corvina, Corvinone, and Rondinella, with the Amarone dried before fermentation and aged in Slavonian oak and French tonneaux.

Sources

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