This movement is, undoubtedly, also motivated by international market tastes, which now privilege authenticity and heritage, valuing ‘typicity’ above and beyond absolute (and implicitly homogenous) ‘quality’. This has permitted the return of varieties like Oseleta that were once rejected by local growers for unpopular traits such as their low yields. Producers are deeply cognisant of their role in safeguarding tradition, a critical factor for Carlo Maria Cerutti of Corteforte. Celestino Gasparini of Zýmē notes that Oseleta, which he first released as a varietal wine in 2001, is arguably more indigenous than Amarone, which only emerged in the last century.

Beyond this, these grapes are indisputably bringing something novel to the quality, and qualities, of Amarone despite remaining minor components (according to DOCG rules, varieties other than Corvina, Corvinone or Rondinella cannot exceed 10% of the blend). Their embrace is something of a rejection of the varietal movement shaping regions like Chianti Classico, where top wines are frequently pure Sangiovese. During our visit to her property, Marinella Camerani of Corte Sant’Alda expressed strong opposition to varietal Corvina (even if the denomination allowed this), particularly when grown on the plains where it gives ‘massive bunches’.

Read more: The Amarone della Valpolicella Report

Instead, Corvina’s naturally moderate colour and tannins have driven producers to embrace varieties like Oseleta, with tiny bunches and thick, tannic skins that have helped it supplant Cabernet and Merlot as blending partners. Molinara – light, pale and fresh – lies at the other end of the spectrum, bringing a ‘sapidità’ (savouriness) or salinity embraced by Serego Alighieri, which has a proprietary clone, and Tommaso Bussola, which has an otherwise potent, muscular style. Some producers are using the nuances of native grapes to distinguish their various bottlings. Sabrina Tedeschi of the Tedeschi estate notes that while they appreciate Oseleta’s complexity, structure and acidity for their single-site Amarone, in other wines like Maternigo (the estate’s Valpolicella Superiore) they focus instead on the spiciness of Corvinone.

Another critical factor is appassimento – Amarone’s distinctive drying process – for which international varieties are suboptimal. For example, Bordeaux grapes often leave a marked herbaceousness and harsh tannin. By contrast, Oseleta’s virtually non-existent juice following appassimento makes extraction very gentle, according to Masi’s Raffaele Boscaini. Along similar lines, Camerani prizes her hillside grown Corvinone – more common in the winery’s eastern Val d’Ilasi home – for the reliable appassimento that its thick-skinned, small bunches achieve, yielding a fine herbal spice. Nadia Zenato (Zenato) notes that her family’s choice to include spicy, berry-toned Croatina is also partially due to its appassimento-friendly sparse bunches.

However, even those who readily admit to the contributions of native grapes also caution that they will likely remain a minor part of the whole, acting as seasoning rather than ingredients. Tedeschi has reduced the level of ‘other’ native grapes – aromatic but colour-poor Dindarella; dark, structured Negrara, and savoury but low-tannin Rossignola, plus Oseleta – from 10% to 5% in its Amarone Marne 180.  Renzo Rubinelli of Rubinelli Vajol, who uses both Oseleta and Molinara for their to the blend, keeps the percentages minimal to avoid the rusticity, crude tannins and delayed drinkability (Oseleta) or frail structure, pale colour and curtailed longevity (Molinara) that a higher percentage of either variety might bring to the wine.

In the end, the greatest fruit of this shift may simply be the increased diversity: Gaspari of Zýmē estate notes the increased potential to appeal to a varied audience, while also acknowledging the potential for confusion. Personally, I find the presence of certain grape varieties a helpful signal of a producer’s stylistic intentions (for instance, in Serego Alighieri’s Molinara-leavened Vaio Armaron vs. Masi’s Oseleta-buttressed Costasera Riserva). Hopefully, with more time and experience, at least a few native grape varieties will develop still clearer identities, permitting a few ‘typical’ Amarone styles to coalesce, each as native as the next.