There are stories that write themselves; stories that don't need bombastic introductions or catchy phrases. Comaroto It's one of those stories. A story that celebrates the times gone by—its slow, inexorable, and evocative passage—to appreciate every nook and cranny, every lesson, and transform it today into a wine that carries within it the essence of an authentic past. We were looking for a name that would recall our grandparents, our ancestors, and that could simultaneously retrace their toil and their lives: a time when people worked with their hands, with their heads down, without shortcuts. Simple, absolute values: honesty and hard work. Values that today often seem at odds with the present.
From this research, Comaroto was born, a name rooted in the nickname of grandfather Ernesto Dal Forno, son of Erminia Danzi, a midwife in the Illasi Valley in the early 1900s. The term "Comare" in the local dialect became "Comaroto": a nickname passed down through the family and today has become a symbol of gratitude, memory, and roots. Winemaker, cellarmaster, oenologist—modern and often high-sounding terms that dominate the language of fine wine. But Comaroto was born precisely to recall what comes first: the countryside, the vineyard, the physical labor, the daily care of the land. Today, too often, the manual work is delegated, considered secondary, while it is there that the true poetry of wine takes shape.
Comaroto chooses to step back to distinguish itself from its competitors: it emphasizes the primary part of the process, where the raw materials become the story. Comaroto Amarone and Valpolicella wines are the result of this philosophy. Wines that embody a work ethic, the authenticity of their origins, and a respect for time. Each bunch is carefully selected, each step rigorously monitored. Not to pursue a specific style, but to convey the truth of the place and history from which it comes. And if there's one skill that's more valuable than any other, it's the one learned alongside Romano Dal Forno. Method, precision, consistency, and the understanding that the raw materials are everything: these teachings have become a tangible legacy. Today, Michele and Luca, Romano's sons, with their company Dal Forno Bros., have transformed that human and technical heritage into a new, strongly identifying project.
Comaroto is their tribute to their family, the valley, and the gestures of their origins. It's the meeting point between memory and the future, between rural culture and winemaking mastery.
As adults, we recall unexpected anecdotes: family evenings at the farmhouse, after-dinner hours spent helping, corking bottles, packing boxes, hand-labeling. Experiences that are relived today as fragments of an emotional and sensorial education. There was the burning stove, the smell of wine, school the next morning. Yet no one perceived it as hard work. It was fun, it was belonging, it was the unwitting beginning of a profession.
That approach to work—driven by respect, curiosity, and natural discipline—has become the very foundation of the Dal Forno method, handed down today in Comaroto. Comaroto isn't just a brand, but a story: the bridge between childhood and maturity, between craftsmanship and knowledge, between memory and vision. Under the guidance of Dal Forno Bros., the project represents the natural evolution of a family tradition that has made the Val d'Illasi an international symbol of quality and authenticity. A name born from the roots to look forward, with the same dedication and respect that have always guided those who, in that valley, learned to make wine with their hands and their hearts.
