Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours, led by Annette Schiller, took place from Sunday, September 06 - Sunday, September 13, 2026.
Being
the northernmost wine region of Italy, Alto Adige is a very
special place where Italian and German traditions merge. It is a
fascinating and unique region in the Alpes. It boasts of an
extraordinary variety of landscapes: snow-capped mountains in the
Dolomites, fertile valleys, streams, century-old breathtakingly
beautiful towns true to their hybrid Germanic-Italian culture.
During this tour we did not change
hotels. We stayed 7 nights at the famous, beautiful 5-star Art-Nouveau
style Parkhotel Laurin in Bozen.
See:
Day 4: Trentino and Valpolicella
This was our day to go to Trentino and to also explore the Valpolicella region north of Verona and also taste @Amarone.
(1) Azienda Agricola Foradori, the world-renowned biodynamic winery in Trentino, often called the "Queen of Teroldogo", that Elisabetta Foradori took over at a very young age. Today, the estate is run by Elisabetta's three children Emilio, Theo and Myrtha Zierock and the latter was our host.
I met her for the first time many years ago at a winemaker dinner at Restaurant schauMahl in Frankfurt when she was still studying in Germany. Myrtha showed us the vineyards and the wine cellar, including the very special amphora cellar, probably the largest in the world, and we sat down for a tasting of the Foradori #worldclass wines.
(2) Lunch at @Enotheca della Valpolicella in Fumane with @Valpolicella wines. The lunch was excellent - very local and traditional, and at the same time at MICHELIN Guide level. We were met by the owner Ada Riolfi.
(3) Visit of @Allegrini , a benchmark producer in the @Valpolicella Classica region. We tasted through the whole range of the Valpolicella wine pyramid: Valpolicella Classico, Superiore, Amarone (using the appassimento method) and Recioto.
(4) Tour of Verona with the ancient Roman Arena that still hosts summer opera shows and the story of Romeo and Juliet. The tour ended with a glass of wine in a traditional wine bar.
Allegrini Azienda Agricola - Valpolicella
Allegrini is one of the defining names of Valpolicella, the hilly wine district northwest of Verona
long associated with Amarone, Italy's celebrated dried-grape red wine. The Allegrini family's
connection to the land dates to the sixteenth century in their native village of Fumane, with the
modern estate formally established in 1854; it was postwar patriarch Giovanni Allegrini, however,
who built the winery's contemporary reputation from the 1960s onward through a relentless focus
on site selection and quality over volume.
Giovanni's boldest move came in 1979, when he planted
the hilltop vineyard of La Grola exclusively with Corvina, the principal Valpolicella grape, followed
by the adjacent La Poja plateau, an unusual single-varietal Corvina cru. These plantings, along with
Palazzo della Torre, became the estate's signature single-vineyard wines, now farmed across more
than 250 acres in Sant'Ambrogio and Fumane.
Today the winery is led by the seventh generation,
siblings who have continued Giovanni's emphasis on hillside sites with favorable morning sun
exposure. Allegrini's Amarone della Valpolicella, made from grapes partially dried on straw mats to
concentrate sugars and flavor before fermentation, has earned repeated placement on Wine
Spectator's Top 100 list and is widely regarded as a benchmark for the appellation.
A tasting here
traces the arc from everyday Valpolicella through Valpolicella Classico Superiore to the rich, age-
worthy intensity of Amarone itself.
Valpolicella, Superiore, Amarone, Ricioto
These four titles represent the distinct styles of red wine produced in the Valpolicella wine region of Veneto, northeastern Italy. They are all made primarily from a blend of the same native grapes—mainly Corvina, Corvinone, and Rondinella—but differ dramatically in how they are made, their alcohol levels, and their sweetness.
The styles range from light and fresh to bold, complex, and sweet:
Valpolicella (or Valpolicella Classico)
This is the standard, everyday table wine. Grapes are harvested and fermented normally after picking.
Valpolicella Superiore
To earn the "Superiore" designation, the wine must be aged for a minimum of one year (usually in oak barrels) and must achieve a slightly higher minimum alcohol content (at least 12% ABV).
Amarone della Valpolicella
Made using a specialized process called appassimento. Grapes are hand-harvested and then laid out on drying racks or lofts for 90 to 120 days. As they dry, they lose up to 40% of their water weight, concentrating the sugars and flavors. The raisins are then fermented completely until all the sugar turns into alcohol. It is aged for at least two years before release.
Recioto della Valpolicella
Grapes undergo the exact same appassimento drying process as Amarone (and are sometimes dried even longer). However, the winemaker stops the fermentation process early. Because fermentation is cut short, yeast does not eat all the sugar, leaving a massive amount of natural residual sweetness in the wine.
Arriving
Introduction
Cellar
Tasting
Appassimento
Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours: Already Released and Forthcoming Postings
Monastery Tour, Vineyard Tour and Wine Tasting at the Neustift Monastery in Brixen - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at Granpanorama Hotel Sambergerhof, Famous for its Uninterrupted 54-kilometer Panoramic View of the Dolomites Chain - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Lovely Al Fresco Dinner in the Alleys of Old Town Bolzano at Franziskaner Stuben - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Visit of Allegrini, a Benchmark Producer in the Valpolicella Classica Region, Tasting through Valpolicella Wine Pyramid: Valpolicella, Valpolicella Superiore, Amarone and Recioto - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Tour of Verona with the Ancient Roman Arena that still hosts Summer Opera Shows and the Story of Romeo and Juliet - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting at Weingut Tiefenbrunner with Owner hristof Tiefenbrunner in Kurtatsch - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch and Tasting at Elena Walch at Castel Ringberg, Overlooking Lake Caldero - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Dinner at Thaler Arome, an Upscale Rooftop Restaurant in the Heart of Bolzano - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar Tour and Tasting at Manincor, a Biodynamic Pioneer and Flagship Winery of the Region, with Owner Count Michael Goess Enzenberg - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at Alpin Hut Oberholz up in the Dolomites 6300 Feet Above Sea Level - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting at Cantina Kurtatsch, a Premier Cooperative, with a Spectacular View of Adige Valley - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Extensive Vineyard Tour, Tasting and Lunch at Alois Lageder, a Historic, Family-run Flagship Winery in Alto Adige, with Sarah Daval, Weinakademiker - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Tour and Tasting at Tenuta Hofstätter in Tramin, a Flagship Winery of the Alto Adige Region, a Pioneer of Vigna (Single Vineyard) Classification in Alto Adige, with Fourth-generation Owner Martin Hofstaetter - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy WineTours
Farewell Dinner at Restaurant 1500 (1 Star Michelin) up in the Vigiljoch above Lana (Reachable only by Cable Car), with Chef Daniel Sanin and Sous-Chef Jonas Graber - Alto Adige 2026 by ombiasy
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