Visiting the Dal Forno Winery: How to See Romano Dal Forno's Estate

Yes, you can visit the Dal Forno winery — but only by private appointment, never as a walk-in. Romano Dal Forno’s estate in Cellore d’Illasi, in the eastern hills of Valpolicella about 30 minutes from Verona, is one of the most revered names in Italian wine, and access is deliberately limited to small private visits arranged in advance. This guide covers who Dal Forno is, what a visit involves, and how to arrange one.

Who is Romano Dal Forno?

Romano Dal Forno is, for many wine lovers, the modern benchmark for Amarone della Valpolicella. Where tradition shaped his neighbour Giuseppe Quintarelli, Dal Forno is celebrated for an almost scientific obsession with quality: drastically reduced yields, painstaking selection in the vineyard, extended drying, and long ageing in new oak. The result is a wine of extraordinary depth, concentration and precision — and one of the most collectible in the country.

His estate sits in the eastern part of Valpolicella, in the Illasi valley, slightly apart from the historic Classico zone to the west. For more on the appellation that produced both icons, see our Valpolicella & Amarone guides.

Can you actually visit — and how?

To be clear: the Dal Forno estate does not run a public tasting room. There is no cellar door for walk-in visitors. Visits happen privately, by appointment, and in small numbers. You can request a visit from the winery directly — or have the whole day arranged for you, appointment included.

Our Lunch with Romano Dal Forno experience is built for exactly this: a private visit with a guide and sommelier, followed by a star-quality menu at a partner restaurant within Verona’s ancient walls.

What a private visit includes

A visit to the estate typically covers:

1. The vineyards — where you see the meticulously tended rows and learn about the low yields that define the style.
2. The cellar — where your sommelier explains the drying (appassimento), the long barrel ageing, and the philosophy behind the wines.
3. The tasting — a guided sit-down through the range, including the celebrated Valpolicella Superiore and Amarone.

With Enouting the day continues with a specially designed lunch in central Verona, each course paired to the wines you’ve just tasted.

What makes Dal Forno’s Amarone different

Even among great Amarone producers, Dal Forno stands apart for a few concrete reasons worth knowing before you visit:

• Extremely low yields. Far fewer bunches are left on each vine than the norm, concentrating flavour into a tiny quantity of fruit.
• Long, careful drying. Grapes are dried for months on raised racks, losing much of their weight before they are ever pressed.
• Extended barrel ageing. The wines spend years in new oak before release, building structure and longevity.
• Tiny production. The combination of all the above makes each bottle rare, which is part of why visits are so closely controlled.

Understanding this context transforms the tasting: when your sommelier pours the Amarone, you can taste the consequence of every one of these choices. It’s the difference between drinking a famous wine and genuinely understanding it.

Dal Forno or Quintarelli?

It’s the question we hear most. Both are legendary, both are appointment-only, and they represent two poles of the same region: Quintarelli in Negrar is its traditional heart, Dal Forno in Illasi its modern, precision-driven summit. Serious enthusiasts often try to experience both — and we can arrange private access to each.

If you’d rather start with a broader overview before visiting a single estate, the Taste of Valpolicella tour visits selected wineries across the region. To plan the wider trip, see our complete guide to wine tours in Verona and our Valpolicella wine tours guide.