2000 Masi Costasera Amarone

Well, well, well, it has been a long time since I had an Amarone! The 2000 Masi Costasera Amarone Classico is not considered to be one of the top flight Amarones, but it is widely available and I have had pretty good experiences in the past. On the nose, nice scents of chocolate, coffee, mushroom, black cherries, but the high alcohol level was very apparent - I could swear it smelled like a fine single malt scotch! On the palate it was medium-bodied with nice balance. It had a short finish, and is definitely for drinking now. I have rarely had the finer Amarones, but I think this is a reasonable facsimile at half the price. Don't plan on driving - with this 15% alcohol you will quickly have trouble touching your nose. This wine was nicely paired with a lightly marinated grilled lamb.
15% alcohol
Cost: ~C$35

I find all of the Masi wines are generally nice values at the low end of the price range - good to know while perusing the wine list at an Italian resto. Even the Tupungato (Argentina meets Verona in a Malbec Ripassa) is nice wine for the price.

Note: Allegrini's Pallazo della Torre and La Grola are made in the Ripassa method, similar to an Amarone, and they are better wines in my opinion.