Dal Forno/Romano Amarone della Valpolicella 2013

98 points Monica Larner (Wine Advocate): "The 2013 Amarone della Valpolicella Monte Lodoletta is my favorite wine in the retrospective, along with the amazing 2011, 2009 and 1996 vintages. This wine was released at the beginning of this year, and because Dal Forno skipped over the 2014 vintage, this is the only Amarone we will see for a while (until the highly anticipated 2015 is released). The 2013 vintage is characterized by a slightly more streamlined mouthfeel (which isn't saying much given the baseline enormity of these wines) with carefully etched aromas of black cherry, rum cake, dark chocolate and toasted espresso. The 2013 vintage was balanced overall without the sudden heat waves we saw in the summers of 2011 and 2012. The grapes finished a slow and steady ripening process over an extended growing season. The effect is graceful and focused. Put this bottle aside in your cellar for the decades to come. Drink: 2022-2055. (Sep 2019)"

97 points James Suckling: "Absurdly intense on the nose, saturated in dark-plum essence, vanilla, tar, ash, mocha and light raisins. Somehow, this still manages to be fresh and elegant — that’s thanks in part to the fine nature of the tannins, which on the surface seem brash and burly. Full-bodied and very, very long, casting dark fruit deep and ingrained. A stunning blockbuster of a wine that will either thrill or disturb. Drink from 2025. (11/26/19)"

95 points Wine Spectator: "[$425 list] A richly pungent red, with smoke and forest floor notes on the nose transitioning to a well-knit range of baked black cherry, bay leaf and dried fig flavors, with a touch of espresso. Full-bodied and dense, with the fine-grained tannins holding sway on the long, minerally finish. Corvina, Rondinella, Oseleta and Croatina. Best from 2023 through 2038. 2,065 cases made, 400 cases imported. (4/30/21)"