Piave Malanotte (Malanotte del Piave) DOCG

Raboso is the Piave plain's native red, famously harsh in acidity and tannin, and Malanotte is the local trick for taming it: a portion of the crop is dried for a few months, then blended back in, and the wine ages at least three years, one of them in wood. The result is deep, savory and still tannic, with sour black cherry, blackberry, violet, cocoa and a tarry, iron-like edge, around 13 to 14 percent alcohol. It sits somewhere between a Ripasso and a young traditional Amarone in idea, with far more acidity than either. A regional oddity that rewards patient cellaring.