Inama's New Releases & New Generation

Almost seventy years after Giuseppe Inama bought his first vines in the Soave Classico region, the third generation is fully installed at the estate. The first and eldest of the brothers joined their father, Stefano, in 2009. Alessio and Luca arrived in 2017. 

The Inama family understood early on the distinctiveness of individual vineyard expressions, even within the small Soave Classico zone. This heartland of Soave has an eastern half with predominantly volcanic soils and a western half with a predominance of calcareous soils. The diving line is the Castelvero Fault. 

The last two decades have marked an important time in Soave, as the Classico area worked to define its Crus. Inama bottles three wines from two Soave Crus: Carbonare (see below), Foscarino and Vigneto du Lot, which hails from a western-facing, Foscarino plot that changes on an annual basis. 

Inama also works with red varieties that have long been native to the region. I remember tasting their Bradissimo wine for the first time, somewhere around 2002-2003. I recall its fleshiness, brightness and purity imprinting themselves on my tastebuds. I was taken with the wine for its provenance. It was not only a Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant bottling from the Veneto, which I thought of as being the land of only Valpolicella and Amarone, but it was also a very individual and expressive Cabernet (granted, with a solid portion of Carmenère included.) Given the global spread of Cabernet Sauvignon, it's not everyday that one stumbles across a unique style. The point is that the Inama reds are as unique as their better-known whites! 

Reds
92
Inama 2016 Bradisismo Colli Berici 14% $30
Bright with exuberantly youthful and resolutely pure flavors of cassis and boysenberry, this Bradisismo is powerful in concentration and rather rich in extract. Sumptuous in aromas and mouthcoating flavor, the full body is precisely encased in zesty acidity and broad, wool-like tannins. The palate is firmly intense but nonetheless approachable with properly ripe fruit and a dollop of toast and dark chocolate tones. The lingering finish is bold with black currants and a vauge undertone of evergreen. The harmony is very impressive, and this deserves more time in bottle to fully show its stuff. This Cabernet Sauvignon with 30% Carmenère is aged 14 months in barrique and seven months in stainless steel before seeing 12 months in bottle prior to release.
Drink: 2022-30

90
Inama 2016 Carmenère Più Veneto Rosso 13% $21
This is a highly refined expression of Carmenère buffered by 30% Merlot. Unusually, it is not one that is dominated by soy sauce aromas. The top notes are a delicious mix of cedar and spruce. Lively in black cherry and black plum fruits, this wine is spicy. It also shows deep, peaty undertones. Broad and bold tannins give the full-bodied core a dignified structure brightened by vivid energy. The overt concentration suggests this needs no immediate attention, and this bottling would benefit from at least another year's age.
Drink: 2021-23

Whites
9
1Inama 2017 Soave Classico Vigneti di Carbonare 12.5% $28
Sultry, sensuous, rounded, vinous and appley, this is a dynamo on the palate. Mouthcoating on the attack, the wine feels especially broad for a wine of only 12.5% abv. The viscosity makes the acidity seem rather mild. However, it springs out on the finish with a crisply dry bite that cleans up the palate while delivering a considerably salty length. The ultra-ripe jackfruit flavors create a whirlwind of complexity and intensity on the palate! This relatively new single vineyard release is produced in stainless steel tanks with 12 months of aging on fine lees and no malolactic fermentation.
Drink: 2020-25 

88
Inama 2019 Soave Classico 12% $16
Bursting out of the glass this wine smells of Key lime, guava and tangerine. The wine glides onto the palate, where it delivers a tongue-encasing coating of glycerol that is swept away by a hint of citrus pith bitterness. The mild finish is pleasantly fruit-driven and delivers a floral aftertaste. Unusually exotic for Soave, it is nonetheless irresistibly drinkable. Incredibly well-priced, this is one to stocking up on for summer and beyond. It is lovely with honey- and lime-glazed red snapper! Made in stainless steel with malolactic fermentation, this matures on its fine lees for six months prior to bottling.