The new vintage of the Tommasi family’s ambitious project is unveiled through the art of illustration,
a universal vocabulary which conveys  the inherent culture and terroir of this great Amarone.
De Buris Illustre is a project that is deeply rooted in the richness of the Valpolicella Classica zone and which, by means of images as symbols, speaks of today’s luxury of time, and the cultural heritage of Amarone.
 #tastethetime  #amaronerenassaince
The 2009 De Buris Amarone della Valpolicella Classico D.O.C. Riserva will be presented on Wednesday 16^th October at the Mudec in Milan. This will be the second vintage of the project that is dear to the Tommasi family: it goes beyond wine and also embraces the restoration of Villa De Buris, part of the area’s historical heritage, as well as an important cultural program.
De Buris means considering a great Amarone as part of a broader cultural project open to new avenues of communication. Illustration was chosen because it is creative and spontaneous like the design of nature, and necessitates a technical mastery which can be likened to the skill of a winemaker.
The Tommasi family entrusted to four Italian artists – Giacomo Bagnara, Andrea Mongia, Antonio Sortino and Alice Piaggio – the assignment of representing Time, Place and Heritage through the universal language of illustration: hence De Buris Illustre (“Illustrious De Buris”, but also “De Buris Illustrated”).
The focal concept is that of Time, the real luxury of today: each illustrator was given one of the seasons, with the task of interpreting it – seeking inspiration from the time of year itself and showing it in the moments when wine is consumed, in the places that make up De Buris (such as the Villa and the La Groletta vineyard), and in the technical aspects linked to the production of the wine itself – always in line with the artist’s poetic vision.
«With De Buris we wanted to illustrate the handover from one generation to the next, but even more we wanted to celebrate the area to which we belong and where we grew up, not only with a great Amarone but also with a communication project that was innovative for us, aimed at a wide audience and requiring profound contents and values», explains enologist Giancarlo Tommasi.
De Buris Amarone Riserva 2009
Something that is extraordinary cannot come from something ordinary. La Groletta, at Sant’Ambrogio della Valpolicella, 250 meters above sea level and with very low yields, has always been considered a very special site because of the quality of its grapes: the best possible place for giving life to a dream, A process of development that was launched more than twenty years ago by the Tommasi family, one of the protagonists in the history of Amarone and of the Valpolicella region, has – with the fourth generation – finally come to fruition.
Everything revolves around the hundred and ten days of appassimento (drying the grapes), a Time whose benefits will be magnified in the glass in terms of richness, complexity and depth, following five years of maturation and repose in large casks of Slavonian oak.
«The 2009 growing season was dominated by fine weather: a year that will remain memorable for our region. This has been followed by ten years of constant, meticulous care,» states Giancarlo Tommasi, «ten years in which – year after year – we have taken all the Time we needed to understand the grapes and the wine, and make the right decisions for adding a more easy-drinking, elegant style to the grandeur of Amarone and so begin a sustainable renaissance for this wine.»
Indeed, the De Buris project also means sustainability: rigorous production methods, expert management of the natural elements, application of environment-friendly technology throughout the production process, and attention to people.
For the Tommasi family all of this is an approach and a philosophy that it has embraced for years now, as the natural expression of those values that have guided four generations of vine-growers.
Distribution
The promise of the previous vintage has been maintained and the 2009 De Buris Amarone Riserva is now becoming available on the market, supported by a series of prestigious accolades from both Italian and foreign wine guides.
As regards distribution, close cooperation with our sales force in Italy and our excellent relationship with top restaurants and wine stores, who have demonstrated their belief in the project and in the product, have meant that demand and interest have been created for a super-premium wine like De Buris.
We have also had great results in foreign markets, particularly the United States and Canada, where the De Buris Grand Tour involved masterclasses in the most important cities with Masters of Wines and top sommeliers.
Special attention is being devoted to the Asian markets, where De Buris was recently presented along with Tommasi’s Amarone: educational and commercial encounters in Peking and Hong Kong to explain this “Amarone Renaissance” to an audience that is ready and willing to purchase top-level products and which – given the constant rate of growth of such goods – represents a touchstone for the luxury sector as a whole.
Following the official launch in Milan, the De Buris Grand Tour will continue in Italy and abroad, in order to present the new 2009 vintage.
De Buris means tasting today’s true luxury, Time. It means shedding exhibitionism to embrace an experience. The tour will see the Tommasi family busy presenting the De Buris project and launching a challenge to top chefs, by asking them to enhance the qualities of this new Amarone by pairing it with an entire customized menu. The goal is to go beyond the classic canons of matching food and wine, allowing diners to enjoy an experience that rewrites the parameters of taste for Amarone.
The elegance of De Buris provides a perfect paradigm for an Amarone from Valpolicella Classica. It is a wine that results from the authentic, typical characteristics of grapes that have been specially selected in the very best vineyard site and then processed with exquisite care: grapes that contain within them the experience and expertise of a long family tradition, which the winemaker has skillfully vinified with passion and talent.
It is a gift of place and of Time.