Azienda Agricola Viviani

Amarone holds a reputation as the elephant of the Italian wine world, crushing all cuisines under its unctuous power. Claudio Viviani takes a different approach – he is looking for nuance, elegance, balance, and above all the ability of the wines to complement and enhance a meal. Viviani is a man who likes to drink his own wines with dinner and, like all good Italians, he loves food! In truth, these graceful wines express a truer identification of the historical traditions of Amarone. Originally, Amarone came only from the highest hills, where altitude above the valley helped to retain acids. Even as harvest dates in Valpolicella have gotten later and later amongst his peers, Claudio looks to no one but the grapes themselves to tell him when to pick. This unique and confident approach, combined with excellent terroir, results in wines which are bright, lively and refreshingly juicy on the palate, even within the larger impression of dense concentration. At Viviani, the trick is not to breed the fattest elephant, but to teach your fat elephant to dance!

The 10 Ha estate in the hamlet of Mazzano boasts vines at the highest elevation of the historic zone (345-450 meters above sea level). The sea breeze and low humidity creates an ideal environment for the vine cultivation and most importantly the necessary drying for the Amarone. The vines face south, south-east and are farmed with minimal intervention avoiding any synthetic products to maintain a healthy respect for the grapes as well as local tradition.

The Wines