One of those questions

[Thomas]

Andypandy,

It's a difficult subject to get across quickly but keep this in mind:

"varietal" is a made up word that refers to the grape variety (which is the real word) on a label.

Valpolicella is not a grape; it is a place. That wine is not a varietal. There are a few grapes blended into it, the major one being Corvina.

The wine is light bodied, cherry fruit forward, and dry--great food wine--unless the one you have is from a bad year, mediocre producer or just poorly produced.