Alexander The Great Amarolo 2016

The boutique bottling of Alexander represent owner/winemaker Yoram Shalom's tireless drive for perfection and his desire to create world-class wines that reflect Israel's terroir. Amarolo is his nod to the famous Amarone wines of Italy, which are made after drying grapes on special mats in order to concentrate their flavors. Shalom applies this same technique to a blend of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 4% Shiraz, and 3% Grenache, only crushing them when they have achieved an almost magical depth of intense flavor.

After fermentation, pressing and 40 months of oak barrel aging, the resulting wine is colossally full-bodied, with concentrated aromas of dried dark fruit and vanilla. The flavors run the gamut from plum to violet to black pepper to butterscotch, with a firm tannic structure that will allow the wine to continue aging. It has been recognized with 90-point scores from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate and the International Wine Review. It is an incredible experience paired with mild soft cheeses like Brie or Affinois, not-too-sweet dark chocolate, or prime rib.