Zenato Alanera Rosso Veronese

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At a Glance

• Producer: Zenato

• Region: Verona, Veneto, northeastern Italy

• Classification: Rosso Veronese IGT

• Grapes: Corvina, Rondinella, Corvinone, with a small amount of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot

• Style: Rich, cherry-driven red with supple tannins and a fresh finish

• Winemaking: Gentle grape drying before fermentation, followed by oak aging.

What to Look For

Fresh cherry alongside dried cherry, a little coffee and tobacco, and that lovely combination of richness and freshness. The fruit feels generous, but there is enough acidity to keep the wine lively. Look for the difference between fruit that tastes ripe and a wine that tastes sugary—those are separate things.

Why This Wine?

For those of us who often reach for California Cabernet, this is an easy place to explore. My comparison is to the generous fruit and polished texture of a ripe California Cab. Here, though, the emphasis shifts toward cherry and dried fruit, rather than Cabernet’s more common blackcurrant character. The tannins feel gentler, with a brighter lift through the finish.

There is even a little Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend, alongside Merlot. But the personality of the wine comes primarily from Verona’s local grapes. Corvina is the leading voice.

From Last Month’s Austria to Veneto

Last month, we explored Austrian Blaufränkisch through Esterházy. The special Objekt 18—Esterházy’s Projekt No. 18—gave us a particularly useful preview of this month’s theme: an Austrian grape interpreted in an Amarone-inspired style.

For that wine, selected Blaufränkisch bunches are dried on straw mats for about 60 days before fermentation. Removing water concentrates what remains, helping explain its dark fruit, fig, chocolate and spice character.

This month, we move into northeastern Italy, to the Veneto region and the countryside around Verona, where grape drying is central to the tradition of Amarone.

Alanera lets us follow that idea into a different grape family. If you were lucky enough to try some of Esterházy’s Objekt 18 concentrated fruit, then look for the cherry character and freshness in this glass. The connection is in the technique; the grapes give each wine its own accent.

What Is Appassimento?

Appassimento means drying grapes after harvest, before making the wine. As the grapes lose water, their juice becomes more concentrated.

Alanera uses a gentle version of that process. It offers a taste of the richness associated with dried-grape wines while retaining freshness. It has an Amarone connection, but it is its own wine, with its own classification and blend.

About Zenato: A Red Wine with White-Wine Roots

Interestingly, this winery's producer began with white wine. Sergio and Carla Zenato founded the winery in 1960 near Lake Garda. Sergio championed Trebbiano di Lugana, the local white grape, before the family expanded its reputation into Valpolicella’s reds. Their children, Nadia and Alberto, carry that work forward, with Nadia overseeing sales and marketing and Alberto production.

Pair With

I would open this with meatloaf, a good meat sauce, roasted pork, or a board of cured meats and aged cheeses. At Fisk, I’d be happy with a glass alongside our pepperoni flatbread or charcuterie.

For a simple comparison, try a sip before your first bite, then another with the food. Notice how the acidity refreshes your mouth while the fruit stays generous.

Curious?

Explore Zenato’s Alanera and the Zenato family’s story.