2009 Paolo Bea Montefalco Rosso San Valentino

Paolo Bea is near the commune of Montelfaco in central Umbria. The 37-acre domaine has been in the Bea family for nearly 500 years, and is today run by patriarch Paolo, his wife and two sons. Like most traditional Italian family farms, the property has historically been home to a variety of crops, orchards and farm animals. Vineyards and winemaking have always been in the mix, but it wasn’t until 1980 that the family began bottling their wine for commercial sales. Today they farm 13 acres of vineyards, with 60% planted to Sagrantino, an ancient grape grown primarily in Montefalco. Sagrantino is thought to have Greek origins, and its name is believed to come from the word “sagra,” or feast, since red wines were always drunk at seasonal celebrations. Sagrantino wines are rich, full-bodied and relatively tannic, giving them the ability to age well. Paolo Bea makes Sagrantino secco, a dry wine, as well as a passito, which is sweet. The domaine also grows Sangiovese, Montepulciano and a few white grapes. The estate is 100% organic. All fruit is harvested by hand and wines are made without filtration.

Umbria is a relatively small region tucked up against the eastern edge of Tuscany and the Marche’s western border. A rich agricultural area famous for olive oil, grains and black truffles, commercial winemaking was not a priority until the mid-20th century, when Giorgio Lungarotti slowly turned his family’s long-held estate from a general agricultural enterprise to commercial vineyards and a winery. In 1968 the area was awarded its first DOC appellation. Today there are two DOCGs and ten DOCs in Umbria, and 30% of the 41,000 vineyard acres are in classified appellations. Umbria is now the sixth largest of Italy’s 20 regions in the quantity t of DOC wines produced. Until the last decade or two, the white wines of Orvieto were Umbria’s best-known wines. Orvieto blends often include the regional grapes Grechetto and Verdello, and may also include Trebbiano and Drupeggio. With the rise of the Lungarotti winery and several others, however, distinctive red wines have also become part of the Umbrian wine portfolio. Sangiovese is the dominant red grape, and it is used for blending. But the unique red grape of Umbria is Sagrantino, a deep, dark grape that makes tannic, spicy wines. Sagrantino accounts for only about 250 acres of Umbria’s vineyards, and it grows nowhere else in Italy, one reason why Sagrantino has become something of a cult wine. Gamay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Canaiolo are also grown.