The Hills of Valpolicella
Az Ag Villa Spinosa, Negrar in Valpolicella, Verona
July 2026
Julie, who is part of the purchasing team and works directly with our Italian producers for wine and shop products recently re-visited the wine estate Villa Spinosa who supply us with Valpolicella and Amarone wines. She was in time for the grape harvest and a perfect long weekend in the beautiful scenic Negrar area in the heart of Valpolicella. We’ve enjoyed a long working relationship of over 30 years with the estate and it’s truly wonderful to be continuing showcasing their wines with Piergiovanni Ferrarese and his family. We held an event at our Marylebone shop a few months ago where a selection of vintages were tasted alongside a special menu, so it was inspiring for Julie to now be visiting the estate and taking part in the harvest.
The drive up to the vineyard is lined with dripping vines of bejewelled fruit along the narrow road. First stop was the Appassimento (Drying Room), an ancient Italian winemaking technique where the grapes are drying on racks in airy rooms, and will stay in this room for 3 to 4 months losing 30-60% of their water weight. The grapes may start to resemble raisins which concentrates the sugar, acids and flavour. At the end of the harvest they are aiming to have filled 25,000 to 26,000 crates with harvested grapes.
Jule then joined the busy harvesting of Rondinella grapes. There is no industrial machinery which would complete the harvest in 3 days, but instead the manual harvest will take 4 weeks. They have a team of approximately 10 local workers who come back every year together with their friends, and even Piergiovanni's parents join in the activity. His mother bakes a cake very morning, and his father is ‘head barista’ making espresso for everyone with his machine on a camping stove.
Julie was allowed to cut some of the Rondinella grapes and Giovanni explained that the best bunches are "Spargolo" which means there is space between the grapes - a loose cluster. This is particularly important to avoid mould growing from the skin into the grapes and allows the heat of the sun to ripen the grapes more evenly. During the drying process (Appassimento), the space between the grapes again prevents mould from forming.
The Rondinella grapes that Julie is cutting in the photo will be used to make Amarone that will be ready in 2032. A small amount of Rondinella is used in Amarone along with larger amounts of Corvinone and Corvina grapes.
The concentration of work picking the grapes certainly produced an appetite and Piergiovanni made a fabulous lunch which he set out on a terrace overlooking the vineyard; and of course we enjoyed a delicious Valpolicella Classico.
You can order Villa Spinosa wines through our website or in our shops. They are also available to enjoy by the glass in our Bar/Café & Restaurant. Great wines for cheese, pasta, charcuterie and game dishes.
