Summary
Sartori di Verona (officially Casa Vinicola Sartori) is a storied family winery in the heart of Valpolicella, north of Verona in the Veneto. It was founded in 1898 by Pietro Sartori, who bought his first vineyard in Negrar – today the fourth generation runs the house under Andrea Sartori. Sartori is known above all for powerful, velvety Amarone della Valpolicella made from dried grapes, first and foremost the top wine Corte Brà. The range is rounded out by Valpolicella Ripasso, Recioto and white Soave from the Garganega grape. Over 80 percent of production goes to more than 50 countries – making Sartori one of the world's best-known ambassadors of the Veronese wine world.
History
The story of Sartori begins in 1898. Pietro Sartori ran a popular tavern in Verona frequented by merchants, traders and businessmen of the area. To be able to reliably serve his guests good Veronese red wine, he bought his first own vineyard in Negrar, in the hilly core of Valpolicella. With this vineyard – around the later Villa Maria – the foundation for the winery was laid.
Over more than 120 years, four generations of the family have woven together tradition and renewal. The small business became a house that carries Verona's typical wines across the world. Today the fourth generation is at the helm with Andrea Sartori, the founder's great-grandson. He has opened up the estate, modernised the range and steadily expanded exports, without losing sight of the historic Villa Maria and its vineyards – it remains the spiritual and geographic centre of the house to this day.
Location & Terroir
The home base is in Negrar, one of the classic communes of Valpolicella Classica in the hills north of Verona. Valpolicella is a web of valleys and hillside terraces whose limestone- and clay-rich soils, together with good ventilation, offer ideal conditions for the region's red lead grapes. The elevation and the proximity to Lake Garda create pronounced day-night temperature swings that give the grapes aroma and freshness.
Around Villa Maria lies the historic Corte Brà vineyard, which gives its name to the top wine of the same name. The single vineyard Montegradella is also important for the Valpolicella wines. In addition, the house sources grapes from further Verona zones – including the neighbouring Soave area and the Lake Garda region, home of white Garganega. Exact hectare figures for the pure estate area vary by source; what is certain is that Sartori has both its own estate vineyards and a broad network with access to high-quality grapes from Verona's best zones.
Style & Philosophy
At the centre stands the appassimento method typical of Verona: after harvest, the red grapes are dried for several months on racks or in crates, so they lose water and concentrate sugar, colour and aromas. From these dried grapes comes the Amarone – a dry-fermented, powerful red wine with high alcohol and notes of dried fruit, cherry, chocolate and spice.
Sartori masters the full keyboard of Valpolicella: from light, fruity Valpolicella to Ripasso – where the young wine ferments a second time on the Amarone pomace, gaining more structure – to sweet Recioto. For white wine the house relies on Soave from Garganega. A specialty is the white Ferdi, a dry wine from partly dried Garganega that transfers the appassimento idea to white wine. For many years the renowned consulting oenologist Franco Bernabei shaped the style – with the aim of producing powerful yet balanced and age-worthy wines.
Notable Vineyards & Wines
The range runs from accessible everyday wine to cellar-worthy top Amarone. Among the best-known wines and vineyards are:
- Corte Brà – Amarone della Valpolicella Classico (Riserva) from the vineyard around Villa Maria; the estate's flagship wine
- Montegradella – a Valpolicella Classico Superiore from the single vineyard of the same name
- Amarone and Ripasso of the Valpolicella Classico line in various styles
- Recioto della Valpolicella – the sweet regional specialty, also made from dried grapes
- Soave Classico and the white Ferdi from dried Garganega
This breadth makes Sartori one of the most versatile ambassadors of Veronese wine styles – from fresh and light to dense and opulent.
Awards
Sartori di Verona's wines are regularly reviewed and awarded in the international trade press. The Corte Brà Amarone in particular reliably earns high scores – for example at Wine Enthusiast and in other tastings around the 90-point mark. Through worldwide export to more than 50 countries, the house has secured a firm place as a reliable and style-defining producer of Valpolicella. Specific scores and medals naturally vary from vintage to vintage; the continuity across four generations and the international presence, however, are seen as the estate's real hallmark.