No one does it quite like Paolo Bea — or rather, Giampero Bea, who’s been carrying on his father’s towering legacy for decades now. The Beas are masters of Sagrantino, a native Umbrian grape variety grown and vinified by just a few dozen winemakers, mostly in and around the town of Montefalco. Rosso de Veo is a young vines selection, and Cerrete comes from the oldest, highest elevation vineyard. Each is treated to a long maceration, followed by even longer aging in stainless steel tanks, large oak barrels, and finally in the bottle.Long before natural winemaking was a 'thing', Paolo farmed without chemicals and with biodiversity in mind. Work in the cellar is minimal, with long, slow fermentations and long periods (many months to several years) spent aging in tank, barrel and bottle. These long macerations, somewhat paradoxically, actually make for more integrated tannins, and help temper the ‘bite’ of alcohol. They might be natural, but they're perhaps more appropriately compared to Italy's other grandly structured and age-worthy wines, like Barolo, Brunello, and Taurasi.
Professional Reviews
Antonio Galloni
What importer Rosenthal Wine Merchant has to say about this wine...
“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.
Details
-
Grape Variety
Sagrantino
-
Vintage
2018
-
Size
750ml
-
Farming Practice
Organic
-
Style
Earthy , Fruity , Minerally
-
Sweetness
Dry
-
Body
Full Bodied