Made ByWinery
Romano Dal Forno operates from a small address in Cellore d'Illasi, deep in the Valpolicella wine country east of Verona. Awarded Pearl 2 Star Prestige recognition in 2025, the estate occupies a serious tier within Italy's northeastern wine scene, where volcanic soils, dramatic elevation changes, and native Corvina-based varieties define what ends up in the bottle.
At a glance
- Price
- $$$$
- Neighborhood
- Cellore d'Illasi
<h2>Where the Valpolicella Hillsides Do the Talking</h2><p>Cellore d'Illasi sits in the eastern arm of the Valpolicella Classico zone, a valley that reaches into the foothills north of Verona where the terrain grows steeper and the viticulture more demanding. This is not the flat, high-yield Valpolicella of the shelf. The Illasi Valley runs parallel to the better-known Valpantena and Fumane corridors, but it operates at greater altitude and with a narrower floor, which concentrates both the vineyards and the attention required to work them. Romano Dal Forno's address at Località Lodoletta, 1 places it squarely in this terrain, and the wines it produces are inseparable from the physical conditions of that position.</p><h2>What the Valley Puts into the Wine</h2><p>The eastern Valpolicella valleys share a geological character shaped by glacial moraine deposits over limestone and basalt. That base drives drainage and forces vine roots deep, reducing yields and concentrating flavour in the grapes that do reach harvest. The native varieties grown here, principally Corvina Veronese alongside Corvinone, Rondinella, and Oseleta, are built for this environment. Corvina in particular carries natural acidity, deep colour, and the structural capacity to withstand the extended drying process that defines Amarone, the zone's most serious appellation.</p><p>Amarone della Valpolicella requires partial drying of the harvested grapes, a process called <em>appassimento</em>, which typically runs from October through January or February. During that period the grapes lose between 30 and 45 percent of their weight, concentrating sugar, extract, and tannin. The result is a wine with the density to age for decades and the phenolic mass to polarise opinion in its youth. Romano Dal Forno's 2025 Pearl 2 Star Prestige award signals a position in the upper tier of Italian wine recognition, consistent with an estate working within the most demanding parameters of this appellation.</p><p>To understand where this approach sits within Italy's premium wine zones. Producers like <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/aldo-conterno-monforte-dalba-winery">Aldo Conterno in Monforte d'Alba</a> work with Nebbiolo under similarly rigorous conditions in Barolo, where extended maceration and long aging also define the upper tier. Further south, estates in Montalcino such as <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/lenoteca-banfi">L'Enoteca Banfi</a> and <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/poggio-antico">Poggio Antico</a> face analogous decisions about extraction and aging in Sangiovese-dominated territory. What connects these estates is a commitment to varieties and terroirs that require patience from both producer and drinker, and that resist shortcuts in the cellar.</p><h2>The Appassimento Discipline and Its Demands</h2><p>The appassimento process distinguishes Valpolicella's serious tier from almost every other Italian appellation. It demands dedicated drying lofts, careful airflow management, and near-constant monitoring for <em>Botrytis</em> infection, which at scale can destroy an entire harvest. Producers who do this at the quality level the Pearl 2 Star Prestige tier implies are not running industrial operations. The selection of fruit for drying begins in the vineyard during harvest, when only the best-formed clusters are separated for this purpose. The remainder may go into the lighter Valpolicella Classico or the Ripasso wines that characterise the appellation's middle tier.</p><p>Ripasso, made by re-fermenting lighter Valpolicella on the pressed Amarone skins, sits between the base appellation and Amarone in both structure and price. It is a useful commercial bridge for estates that need cash flow during the multi-year wait for Amarone to be ready for release. At the level Romano Dal Forno occupies, the Amarone itself is the primary statement, and its release cycle often stretches to seven or more years after harvest before the estate considers it ready. That kind of patience in production is part of what separates the prestige tier from the broader Valpolicella market.</p><p>Internationally, only a handful of appellations demand comparable production timelines. The Barolo aging requirements from <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/aldo-conterno-monforte-dalba-winery">Piemonte's Langhe hills</a> and the extended barrel programs at estates like <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/ca-del-bosco-erbusco-winery">Ca' del Bosco in Franciacorta</a> share this logic of time as a production input. In Tuscany, <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/castello-di-volpaia-radda-in-chianti-winery">Castello di Volpaia in Radda in Chianti</a> takes a comparable approach to unhurried release, and producers further south including <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/lungarotti-torgiano-winery">Lungarotti in Torgiano</a> demonstrate that central Italian estates increasingly compete on aging discipline as a point of differentiation.</p><h2>Visiting and Planning</h2><p>Cellore d'Illasi is accessible from Verona, which has strong rail connections to Milan and Venice and a regional airport. The Illasi Valley is roughly 25 to 30 kilometres northeast of central Verona by road, through the wine country that progressively narrows as it climbs toward the Lessini plateau. Estate visits in this tier of Valpolicella production are not walk-in affairs. Given Romano Dal Forno's 2025 Pearl 2 Star Prestige recognition and the production constraints that come with a small, precision-focused estate, contact in advance is the only practical approach. Contact in advance is the only practical approach.</p><p>The eastern valleys of Valpolicella, including Illasi, Mezzane, and Tramigna, are geographically close to one another and can be combined into a two-day itinerary without difficulty. Verona serves as a natural base. If the broader Veneto wine route interests you, the region connects logically to Soave to the southeast and to the Bardolino shores of Lake Garda to the west, though the character of those appellations differs substantially from the concentration and structure that defines Illasi Valley Amarone.</p><p> <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/poli-distillerie-schiavon-vicenza-winery">Poli Distillerie in Schiavon</a>, <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/nonino-distillery-pavia-di-udine-winery">Nonino Distillery in Pavia di Udine</a>, and <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/distilleria-marzadro-nogaredo-winery">Distilleria Marzadro in Nogaredo</a> operate in the grappa tradition that emerged from the same wine-producing culture as Valpolicella, while further into Piedmont, <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/distilleria-romano-levi-neive-winery">Distilleria Romano Levi in Neive</a> represents the artisanal end of that category. Across the south, <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/planeta-menfi-winery">Planeta in Menfi</a> and in the north, <a href="https://www.enprimeurclub.com/wineries/campari-milan-winery">Campari in Milan</a> round out the range of Italian producers worth understanding as context for the country's drinks culture at the prestige level.</p>
Know before you go
- Dress code
- smart_casual
- Reservations
- appointment_only
- Parking
- on_site_lot
Frequently asked
What's the general vibe of Romano Dal Forno?
This is an agricultural estate first and a destination second. The address — Località Lodoletta, 1, Cellore d'Illasi — places you in the foothills north of Verona, well clear of tourist infrastructure. The focus is entirely on production, and visits reflect that seriousness. Dal Forno's 2025 Pearl 2 Star Prestige recognition signals the tier you're engaging with before you arrive.
Is Romano Dal Forno recognized by any major rating lists?
Romano Dal Forno has received recognition including: Pearl 2 Star Prestige (2025).
What should I taste at Romano Dal Forno?
The estate's reputation is built on appassimento-driven wines: dried-grape Amarone and Valpolicella Superiore from the Illasi Valley's limestone and glacial moraine soils. These are among the most intensively produced expressions in the appellation, with grape drying extending into winter before fermentation. Allocation is limited, so access through the estate directly is the most reliable route.
What's the address for Romano Dal Forno?
Romano Dal Forno is located at d'Illasi, Località Lodoletta, 1, 37031 Cellore VR, Cellore d'Illasi.
What's the standout thing about Romano Dal Forno?
Dal Forno operates at the uppermost tier of Valpolicella production, a position confirmed by the 2025 Pearl 2 Star Prestige award. What separates the estate is the commitment to appassimento at a scale and duration that most producers cannot or will not match — longer drying times, lower yields, and cellar work measured in years rather than months. The result is a wine that regularly draws comparison to Burgundy Grand Cru in terms of collector attention.
Is Romano Dal Forno reservation-only?
Visits to working wine estates in the Illasi Valley are not walk-in affairs, and Dal Forno is no exception given the scale of interest relative to production. Reaching out through established wine importers or specialist Verona wine merchants is the conventional path for both visits and purchasing.
How does Romano Dal Forno's Pearl 2 Star Prestige rating compare to other Valpolicella producers?
The Pearl 2 Star Prestige awarded in 2025 places Romano Dal Forno among a small group of estates recognised at the highest tier of the EP Club rating system. Within the Valpolicella appellation, the Illasi Valley arm has historically produced wines of greater concentration than the Classico heartland, and Dal Forno's position in Cellore d'Illasi is central to that geographic argument. Few producers in the denomination hold equivalent recognition at this level.
Address
d'Illasi, Località Lodoletta, 1, 37031 Cellore VR
Cellore d'Illasi
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