There are several wineries in the Niagara, Ontario wine producing area that have gone Italian the Appassimento and Ripasso way. In Italy the crushed grapes made to use Amarone are “reused” in the Ripasso method. The pomace (the pulpy mass of seeds and skins leftover after the Amarone has fermented) is left in contact with the newly fermented Valpolicella wine for a couple of weeks leaving the wine to pick up extra colour, flavour and structure from the pomace. Amarone is made with grapes left to dry and shrivel leaving a more concentrated juice. The result would be Valpolicella Ripasso. Foreign Affair uses Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon (not used in the making of Valpolicella) which is then “passed over” the pomace it has used to make its Amarone style wines. The result should be a full bodied and intense red wine but far less so than an Amarone style wine.
Don’t think an Amarone or a Ripasso style wine is better than other red wines but rather is a different style suited for different foods, places and times
Aroma: Black cherry, figs, dark chocolate, kirsch and blackberry.
Palate: Tannins gently swell into the palate but it is a wave of tannins not a tsunami! Rather smooth but not as rich and fruit rich as you might expect from a Ripasso. Blackberry, black cherry, a bit of blueberry and coal. Almost tart. Short finish.
Personality: Italian in spirit Ontario in result.
Food Match: Can’t get Chicken Cacciatore out of my mind so despite observations from certain family members I “poach” my dishes I will have to prepare it on the sly.
Cellarbility: Drink in 2025.
Price: $19.45 CDN.
RKS 2025 Wine Rating: 89/100. Wine Align 89.
(The Foreign Affair Winery 2019 Conspiracy, VQA Niagara Peninsula, The Foreign Affair Winery, Vineland Station, Ontario, 750 mL, 12.5%).
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