PV Tasting Notes
Amarone is one of the wines most shaped by the hand of man, and can truly be called a work of art. The 2003 Amarone from Zyme is a knock out wine, opulent and loaded with super-sweet ripe fruit, graphite and wonderful floral scents, beautifully complex although still a little primary, this could ideally do with another few years in bottle. On the palate it is so pretty with blueberry jam, smoky chocolate, black cherries, dried herbs, white pepper and hints of citrus, has stunning depth and a long finish, a wonderful expression of Amarone which ranges from fruit to grass to rose petal, I believe will develop further when the tannins round out, they’re just a touch dry for the moment. This will become a joy to drink in another 2-3 years which will add even further layers of complexity.
Independent Review92 Points Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate Oct 2009
The 2003 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico reveals gorgeous density and purity in its fruit. Sweet menthol, flowers and minerals emerge with air, adding considerable complexity to the dark fruit. The wine boasts superb balance and the French oak is integrated very nicely, even if the tannins dry out slightly on the finish. This medium-bodied yet sumptuous Amarone is all about clarity and precision. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2021.
Zyme, is the ancient word for Yeast or ferment, and Celestino Gaspari chose it as the brand name for his own dream project located in Valpolicella. The fifteen hectare estate and was founded in 2003, The aging of the wines continues in beautiful and quite dramatic underground cellars which are carved out of a sandstone quarry dating from 1400AD although winemaking activity precedes this date. Celestino was the winemaker at Quinterelli for a period of eleven years and is married to the daughter of Giuseppe Quintarelli, widely considered the heir-apparent; but he has a deep sense of individuality and felt without adequate expression here, wanting to stamp his own mark on the world of wine, decided to work on his own project; Which included, developing new and unique grape varietals introducing different growing techniques and bringing back almost extinct species.
Gaspari is a quiet and very determined man, technically highly proficient and totally in touch nature, he wants his wines to have strong individuality drawing from the best of nature and with his skills creating something on a higher plain. He is clearly very ambitious and has struggled within the bounds of tradition in both previous employment and working within the rules of the DOC, because of this, his and unlike many other top producers of the region his top wine is not the Amarone, but is in fact quite simply Vino Rosso IGT (red table wine); however, there is nothing simple about this or his other wines; Above all else - one thing is certain, Gaspari is an Artist.
In order to pay the bills over last few years Gaspari has been assisting some of the most exciting young properties in the north Italian provinces, but has totally scaled back the consulting work now to concentrate more on his own dreams and I simply cannot believe any of these other projects will be nearly as exciting as this.