2004 Sagrantino di Montefalco Pagliaro

This estate is one of many in Italy that believe in organic farming and non-interventionist winemaking. There's no temperature control in the cellar, only native yeasts are used, and no fining or filtration are done. Bea's wines are less massive than the average in Montefalco, but they boast considerable finesse and charm.

My visit with Giampiero Bea was illuminating, as we spent several hours tasting through virtually every wine in the cellar. Bea has a number of promising wines in cask that should satisfy the cravings of his most passionate fans. Among the wines that will be released in coming years is a new Sagrantino from the Rignano vineyard which is a stone's throw from the winery. The new cellar, still under construction, is decidely stark and minimalist in style. Bea pursues a natural, non-interventionalist approach. The wines undergo fermentation without temperature control, using only ambient yeasts. Malolactic fermentation takes place in steel, though here too, the timing and pace is dictated by nature. The wines are neither fined nor filtered prior to being bottled, and all important operations are undertaken according to the lunar calendar. To be sure, this is high-risk winemaking. The results can be striking, but they can also be quite variable when nature decides to be capricious. Bea prefers hot vintages such as 2003 and 2007, so it is no surprise he is most excited about those vintages. While those wines certainly possess impressive concentration, my sense is he might be able to do more in less favorable years like 2004 and 2005, where some of the wines lack a touch of depth. Bea's labels contain a wealth of information about the vintage and how each wine was made, although the notes are only printed in Italian. Longtime fans of the wines will notice that in recent years the specific names of the vineyards have taken greater prominence in the labels. The Bea wines are all about subtlety, grace and elegance. At their best, they are among the finest wines to emerge from Montefalco, and Italy, for that matter.