Paolo Bea 2018 Umbria IGT “Rosso de Véo”

100% Sagrantino. Dried plums, dried cherries, wild berries, cherry compote, balsamic, savory herbs, violets, and earth. The flavors follow seamlessly from the aromas. The tannins are ripe and robust and extend the finish to great lengths. Best to give this a few years in the cellar, 6-8 from vintage, but with hearty meat dishes can be subdued. Organic.

“Rosso de Véo” is a selection of the Bea estate’s younger Sagrantino vines, principally from the Cerrete vineyard which graces the highest point in Montefalco, between 1300 and 1500 feet above sea level. The soil is clay and limestone infused with small pebbles from an ancient riverbed. This wine is vinified in a similar fashion to the single vineyard Sagrantino with a long cuvaison which extends forty to fifty days. The wine is then aged one year in stainless steel tanks, two years in large oak barrels and another year in bottle before release. The wine is not filtered. Production varies depending on vintage … 9000 bottles were produced in 2005, the first year this exclusively Sagrantino-based cuvée was created. Organic.