Valpolicella Classico DOCCorvina, Corvinone, RondinellaEUR 11-17 at retailstill-red
Certified organic Valpolicella from the Vaona cellar at Valgatara, priced in the same band as the uncertified reds around it.
Tip: The label carries the organic certification mark. Ask at the cellar which parcels on Via Paverno went into the vintage.
Valpolicella Classico DOCCorvina, Corvinone, RondinellaEUR 12-18 at retailstill-red
Certified organic Valpolicella from the Casterna slope above Fumane, named after the Saint John's wort that grows in the vineyard.
Tip: The operating cellar is at Via Casterna 60 in Fumane even though the registered office is in San Pietro in Cariano.
Valpolicella Classico DOCCorvina, Corvinone, RondinellaEUR 12-18 at retailstill-red
Certified organic entry red from the Vaona family terraces at Marano, the lightest wine in a range that runs up to Amarone.
Tip: Novaia also bottle Fapulito, a second Classico at roughly EUR 14 to 20, from a separate parcel.
Valpolicella Classico DOCCorvina, Corvinone, RondinellaEUR 12-18 at retailstill-red
Certified organic Valpolicella from the Castellani brothers at Valgatara, the entry point to a range that includes the Ravazzol and Casalvegri crus.
Tip: Casalvegri, the Classico Superiore, is around EUR 20 to 28 and is the bottle to buy if you can stretch the budget once.
Valpolicella Classico DOCCorvina, Corvinone, RondinellaEUR 12-18 at retailstill-red
Claudio Viviani's base red from the high Mazzano vineyards, the same terraces that feed the Casa dei Bepi Amarone.
Tip: Mazzano sits high on the ridge above Negrar. The base Classico is the cheapest way to taste fruit from that altitude.
Valpolicella Classico DOCCorvina, Corvinone, RondinellaEUR 14-20 at retailstill-red
Marco Speri's entry red from Fumane, made in the same deliberately traditional register as the Amarone but without the drying.
Tip: This is the cheapest bottle in a cellar built on long macerations and big Slavonian casks, so it reads older than its price.