Sagrantino di Montefalco: Umbria’s Best Wine
Discover Sagrantino, Umbria’s Best Kept Secret
If you have ever been to Umbria you will know that it is characterized by rolling green hills, vast olive groves, and sprawling vineyards. Although often overshadowed by its famous neighbor, Tuscany, Umbria is an amazing wine-producing region of Italy, and it is the home of a grape that is only found in a small, restricted corner of this beautiful part of the country, Sagrantino.
The town is called Montefalco and the grape to try, also known as the king of tannins, is the Sagrantino. It is the trademark of Umbrian wines, such as Barolo is of Piedmont and Brunello di Montalcino of Tuscany.
This grape is unique and is considered one of the most tannic varieties in the world. Only the capable hands of experts and time (it is aged for 30 months of which at least 12 months in oak barrels plus another year or so in a bottle) can turn it from a mouth-drying unapproachable experience (in its early age) to an experience that you will forever treasure.
The wine is rich with an explosion of aromas and flavors that will leave you mesmerized. Dark, almost black ruby red, with notes of cocoa powder, licorice, dark berry, leather, vanilla, and sage. The profile is so complex and unique that each aroma unveils slowly in your glass.
For centuries Sagrantino grape was used to only make sweet wine, known as Sagrantino Passito. The grape was so austere and tannic that no-one even considered turning it into table wine. In the mid-1960s, after being on the verge of extinction, a handful of wine producers in the area believed in the potential of this grape and their hard work and belief created what is now considered among one of the best Italian reds. This wine can properly age for over 25 years, and the wait will definitely be worth it!
Taste fabulous Italian wines on a progressive wine tour through Rome’s beautiful back streets on our Rome by Night Wine Tasting Tour.
