Rich, with saturated fruit notes of baked boysenberry and blackberry coulis and accents of medicinal herb and espresso cream, this velvety, full-bodied red is a full-throttle expression of Amarone, set in a harmonious frame. Creamy tannins firm the long, well-spiced finish. Drink now through 2035.

This is an oversized wine. The Bussola 2011 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva TB is showing some pretty evolution with dusty spicy notes, tarry smoke and licorice. The 2011 vintage will be remembered for the hot and dry winds that blew north from Africa throughout much of the summer. This blend of 45% Corvina, 30% Corvinone and 25% Rondinella (which is fermented for 50 days in steel and aged in oak for 66 months with new and neural oak) continues to show intact fruit despite the wine's advanced age. You get plenty of alcoholic punch, measuring 17%, which proves impossible to ignore and surely difficult to manage unless a robust food-pairing partner is found. I tasted bottle number 1,020 of 9,356 released.