With a charred juicy steak, my drink of choice is usually Malbec or Cabernet Sauvignon.

So when the folks at Masi Agricola asked me to try a sample of one of their Amarones with a prime steak instead, I was game to see what that pairing would be like.

It’s an unusual type of wine in that it’s made from semi-dried grapes. An age-old tradition in Italy’s northeast Veneto region, it involves laying out the grapes on drying lofts for up to four months to concentrate their sugars before pressing.

Masi Agricola is the leading producer of Amarone. Its Masi Agricola Costasera Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOCG 2011 ($62.99) is a blend of Corvina, Rondinella and Molinara grapes. Of the three varietals, the Corvino is the only one to develop botrytis or noble rot, the prized fungus that causes the grapes to lose nearly all their water content, thus concentrating their flavors to the max.

It’s a hefty wine, but not in the same way as a California Cab with its powerful tannins. Instead the Amarone’s tannins are structured but less dominant. It has the aroma of aged balsamic, and the weighty flavors of dried fruit like raisins and prunes, as well as hits of cinnamon and cocoa.

I tried it with a sample of Flannery Beef’s dry-aged prime New York strip. Bay Area-based Bryan Flannery’s exquisite beef can be found on the menu of some of the finest restaurants, including Press in St. Helena, the Restaurant at Meadowood in St. Helena, Spruce in San Francisco, and Next in Chicago.

Much like the wine, the beef is dry-aged to concentrate its flavor. In this case, for 35 days. We grilled it, giving the tender 1 1/2-inch-thick steak a slight smokiness. It had a nice ring of fat around it, along with even marbling. There’s a natural sweetness to the robust meat, and a long finish to it.

Because the Amarone is so rich tasting, it might be overkill alongside an extremely marbled steak like Wagyu. But with the strip steak that’s not quite so over-the-top fatty, it actually worked pretty well, as both the meat and the wine had similar weights on the palate.

It definitely opened my eyes and taste buds to another red worth uncorking the next time I enjoy a steak.