Region: Umbria
Quality Level in EU/Italian Wine Law: Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG and Rosso DOC
Primary Grape Varieties: Sagrantino with Sangiovese in the Rosso Blends. 100% Sagrantino in Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG
Pairs with: Pizza, Pasta and anything with Truffles
Wine Styles: High in tannin and color, this wine needs time to soften and resolve. It will pair well with fatty dishes with some substance. Flavors of Blackberry, red plum and floral.
The region where Lazio and Umbria join is landlocked and inland with a slightly continental climate. Sgrantino is grown in Umbria that is warm with hot summers. There is adequate rain with most of the 800 mm falling in the fall and winter. High summer temperatures can lead to times of heat stress but the thick skinned Sagrantino tolerates it well. It is often trained in Guyot, or Cordon with spurs and VSP trellised to maximize sunlight and provide enough air circulation to counter the susceptibility to mildews. Sagrantino is also prone to mite damaged moths.
The high levels of sun help develop the deep levels of tannin, color and flavors of these wines. The grapes are cultivated at elevations of 220-470 meters. This allows the grapes to obtain adequate sunlight while retaining their acidity.
The wines are very tannic with medium to high levels of flavor intensity with notes of black and red plum fruit. The wines have high acidity and one should look for a vintage with some bottle age.
The DOCG level wines are matured for at least 33 months with at least one year in wood. While this adds to the cost, it allows the wine to soften and develop. New winemaking techniques that include shorter maceration times is also making this wine more approachable early and some are beginning to use small French oak barrique for faster development of flavor and softening of tannins.
Quality Level in EU/Italian Wine Law: Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG and Rosso DOC
Primary Grape Varieties: Sagrantino with Sangiovese in the Rosso Blends. 100% Sagrantino in Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG
Pairs with: Pizza, Pasta and anything with Truffles
Wine Styles: High in tannin and color, this wine needs time to soften and resolve. It will pair well with fatty dishes with some substance. Flavors of Blackberry, red plum and floral.
The region where Lazio and Umbria join is landlocked and inland with a slightly continental climate. Sgrantino is grown in Umbria that is warm with hot summers. There is adequate rain with most of the 800 mm falling in the fall and winter. High summer temperatures can lead to times of heat stress but the thick skinned Sagrantino tolerates it well. It is often trained in Guyot, or Cordon with spurs and VSP trellised to maximize sunlight and provide enough air circulation to counter the susceptibility to mildews. Sagrantino is also prone to mite damaged moths.
The high levels of sun help develop the deep levels of tannin, color and flavors of these wines. The grapes are cultivated at elevations of 220-470 meters. This allows the grapes to obtain adequate sunlight while retaining their acidity.
The wines are very tannic with medium to high levels of flavor intensity with notes of black and red plum fruit. The wines have high acidity and one should look for a vintage with some bottle age.
The DOCG level wines are matured for at least 33 months with at least one year in wood. While this adds to the cost, it allows the wine to soften and develop. New winemaking techniques that include shorter maceration times is also making this wine more approachable early and some are beginning to use small French oak barrique for faster development of flavor and softening of tannins.
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