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Bussola Tommaso
A full-bodied Valpolicella Classico Superiore from Tommaso Bussola in Negrar. Half the grapes dry for three months before crushing, then the wine ages 42 months in wood. The 2018 is 15.5%, with plum, dried fig and dark chocolate.
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Half the grapes for this Valpolicella Classico Superiore dry for three months before crushing. The wine then spends 42 months in wood, first in new barrels and then in a large cask. The 2018 is full-bodied at 15.5%, with plum, dried fig and dark chocolate.
Ripe plum, blackberry and dried fig, with dark chocolate and a fresh lift of mint and bay leaf. Half of the grapes spent three months drying in small trays before the Bussola family crushed them.
Blackberry
Cherry
Fig
Plum
Mint
Oak
Liquorice
ChocolateFull-bodied and rich at 15.5%, yet fresh acidity keeps it lively. The tannins are thick but smooth after 32 months in new barrels and ten more in a large cask. Cherry and plum fruit carry an earthy, savoury streak.
Long, with clove and liquorice lingering over a savoury, earthy close. The 15.5% alcohol shows as warmth right at the end.
A big, rich red from the TB line that Tommaso Bussola began in the early 1990s. Falstaff scored the 2018 91 points and found it "old school, but very precisely worked out". Across vintages, drinkers pick out oak, chocolate and dark fruit most, and we would drink this one by the end of 2027.
XtraWine is the one shop on this page, with the 2018 at £45 a bottle, so there is no price to compare here. That is more than most Valpolicella costs in UK shops. It buys one of 9,262 numbered bottles, held more than four years before release.
Best with food and Best for an occasion lead the scores. Tommaso Bussola dries half the grapes for this full-bodied, 15.5% Valpolicella Classico Superiore, and it wants a rich dinner.
Thick but smooth tannins, fresh acidity and a full body suit braised beef, roasts, game and mature cheese. The weight and 15.5% alcohol make it a poor match for delicate fish or hot chilli.
A numbered bottle from the TB line of a family estate in Negrar. It is rich enough for a special dinner, or a gift for someone who loves big Veneto reds.
Big, rich and warm at 15.5%, with thick tannins: a lot of wine for a first Valpolicella. Lovers of rich reds will enjoy it, but a newcomer may find a lighter Valpolicella Classico easier.
At £45 it costs more than most Valpolicella sold in UK shops. The price pays for one of 9,262 numbered bottles, half the grapes dried for three months, and four years in the cellar before bottling.
The long ageing happens at the winery, so there is little to gain from keeping the 2018. We would open it by the end of 2027.
At £45 and 15.5% alcohol, this is a bottle for a slow dinner or a Sunday roast, not a weeknight glass.
Scoring is rule-based and deterministic. The model and weightings are documented in our Wine Fit Score methodology.
A compact view of what the Valpolicella denomination actually requires, and how this bottle sits inside it. Pulled from the official Italian disciplinare.
Only the 2018 is on sale here. Vinous gives it a short drinking window, 2025 to 2027, against 2024 to 2032 for the 2016. So we would drink this one now rather than keep it.
The 2018 growing year was warmer than usual in Valpolicella, with rain on and off through much of the summer. The grapes came in with good acidity, and we would drink this 2018 now and by the end of 2027.
The 2018 growing year was warmer than usual in Valpolicella, with rain on and off through much of the summer. The grapes came in with good acidity, and we would drink this 2018 now and by the end of 2027.
Drink-now / hold guidance reflects general style cues for this wine, not a forecast for a specific bottle. Where vintage-level editorial notes exist, they appear above.
Tommaso Bussola joined his uncle Giuseppe's small winery in 1977, when its wines carried the mark BG. TB arrived with his new cellar in 1992 to 1993. The grapes for this wine grow on the hills of Negrar, in the heart of Valpolicella Classico, and Falstaff scored the 2018 91 points.
Italian wine law sorts bottles into a pyramid. DOCG sits at the top: tightly drawn boundaries, prescribed grapes, mandatory ageing, government tasting before release. DOC is the same idea with looser thresholds. IGT (Indicazione Geografica Tipica) is broader still, requiring only that 85% of the grapes come from the named territory.
Valpolicella is in the DOC tier. That is not a quality verdict, it is a description of how much freedom the producer has at vinification and ageing.
Valpolicella falls within Veneto, covering Verona: 19 communes from the Classico valleys through Valpantena to the Illasi hills. The denomination is further divided into 2 sub-zones.
Wine route
Half day · 5 stops
Open the driveWine route
1 day · 7 stops
Open the drive
Winery
Negrar
Made at Bussola Tommaso, Negrar. Directions
Wine routes in the zone: Valpolicella Classico Loop, Strada del Vino Soave.
Of the £45 bottle, about £11.06 is tax. Duty is £3.56 at £30.62 per litre of pure alcohol, and VAT is £7.50.
Bussola ages this wine 32 months in new barrels and ten more in a large cask, then bottles it after four years in the cellar. It rests six more months in bottle, so each bottle waits years before it is sold.
Half the grapes spend three months drying in small trays before they are crushed. Drying concentrates their sugar, which helps give the 15.5% alcohol, but it ties up fruit and space for a whole season.
The 2018 label numbers each bottle, 9,262 in all. A run that small spreads the cost of hand-picked hill vineyards and long ageing over few bottles.
An Amarone is made from grapes dried for about 100 to 120 days. Here only half the grapes are dried, and for three months, so the wine needs less drying time and space than an Amarone.
At 15.5%, with thick but smooth tannins and fresh acidity, Bussola's TB Valpolicella Classico Superiore needs food with weight. Slow-cooked beef, roasts, porcini and mature cheese all suit it. Hot chilli does not.
Long-cooked beef and rich meat sauces soften the thick tannins, and the fresh acidity stops the dish feeling heavy. A full-bodied Valpolicella Classico Superiore like Bussola's TB, at 15.5%, has the weight to match a slow braise.
Try with: Brasato al Barolo · Ossobuco alla Milanese · Ragu alla bolognese · Lasagna · More pairings →
Red meat and gravy need a red with real weight, or the wine tastes thin beside them. Bussola's TB Valpolicella Classico Superiore is full-bodied, with plum and fig fruit that stands up to roast beef and venison stew.
Try with: Sunday Roast Beef · Beef wellington · Venison Stew · Steak and Kidney Pie · More pairings →
The earthy, savoury streak in this Valpolicella Classico Superiore picks up the woodland smell of porcini and truffle. Bussola's TB adds ripe plum and cherry on top, so the dish tastes deeper rather than flat.
Try with: Porcini mushroom risotto · Truffle risotto · Tajarin al Tartufo · Tagliatelle al tartufo di Acqualagna · More pairings →
Salt in an aged cheese softens the grip of the tannins and brings the fruit forward. The ripe plum and fig in Bussola's TB Valpolicella Classico Superiore sit well against a strong Cheddar or an aged Pecorino.
Try with: Strong cheddar cheese · Pecorino sardo e pan carasau · Cheese board
Fresh acidity cuts through fatty crackling and keeps each mouthful clean. A full-bodied Veneto red like Bussola's TB Valpolicella Classico Superiore also has the weight for the herbs and salt of a porchetta.
Try with: Porchetta · Roast pork · Pork belly
Hot chilli makes the 15.5% alcohol burn and turns the thick tannins bitter. Keep Bussola's TB Valpolicella Classico Superiore for rich, gently spiced food, and choose another bottle for a hot curry.
Skip with: Chicken madras · Jungle Curry · Szechuan beef · Pizza Diavola · Pairing guide →
The 2018 is ready now, with its long ageing done at the winery. We would open it by the end of 2027 rather than keep it longer.
Best in the years above; holds without falling over either side.
A short splash decant softens the first-pour edge and opens the aromatics.
Aim for the cooler end on a warm day; warmer end opens up more aromatics.
The long ageing happens at the winery, so there is little to gain from keeping the 2018. We would open it by the end of 2027.
£45.00 for a 75cl bottle of the 2018, at XtraWine, is the best price we track, and we have no signal of further discounting.
Read directly from each retailer’s public product page once a day. Last refresh: 28 Oct 2026, 09:00 BST. We do not hold stock and we do not accept payment for placement.
Confidence · HighDrawn from what drinkers consistently report on Vivino, summarised in our own words. A crowd read across many tasters, not a single critic. Drinkers score it 4.2 out of 5 from 121 ratings on Vivino.
Confidence · MediumFrom the official Italian disciplinare for this denomination, cross-checked against the Ministry of Agriculture register.
Confidence · HighOur reading of the price, drawn from the disciplinare, public UK duty rates, and typical landed-cost benchmarks. Not a quote from the producer or a retailer.
Confidence · MediumStyle guidance for this kind of wine at this price point. Treat it as advice, not a forecast for the bottle in your hand.
Confidence · MediumNo, the family makes it a different way. Half the grapes are fermented fresh in October. The other half dry for three months and are then crushed, and about ten days into their ferment the October wine is added. Bussola's Ripasso is a separate wine, Cà del Laito, made by fermenting young wine again on Amarone skins.
TB is the mark Tommaso Bussola introduced with his new cellar of 1992 to 1993. He started in 1977 at his uncle Giuseppe's small winery, whose wines then carried the mark BG. The family says TB marks an innovative style that stands for very high quality.
The 2018 is 15.5% alcohol, well above the 12% minimum for a Valpolicella Superiore. Drying half the grapes concentrates their sugar, and that sugar becomes alcohol. Expect a big, warm red.
Now, and by the end of 2027. Bussola keeps the wine four years in the cellar and six months in bottle before release, so it is ready to open.
Rich meat suits it best: braised beef, roast beef, venison stew and roast pork. Porcini risotto and mature hard cheese work too. Avoid hot chilli, which makes the 15.5% alcohol burn.
XtraWine sells the 2018 at £45 a bottle. It is the only shop on this page, so there is no price to compare here.
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