We were guided around on our tour by Wendy, who was very knowledgeable and friendly, not only about the winery, but the surrounding area. After seeing where they age the wine and bottle it, we were treated to a lunch with wine tastings. First up was the Grechetto, which was paired with antipasto. The Grechetto is made from 100% Grechetto grapes. It is aged in stainless steel vats and then aged in bottles for 3 months. It is meant to be drunk as soon as possible. This isn't a wine you age in your cellar for years. It has a good fruit smell to it and pairs well with starters, fish and grain dishes.
We ate it with some salami, prosciutto, local cheese, roasted eggplant, toast with olive oil, onion omlette and a local pizza that was made with bread and prosciutto. Next up was the Montefalco Rosso. It was paired with a pasta dish made with local spelt flour. Something interesting that I learned about spelt is that it is not a hybrid grain. It is the same now as it was 500 years ago. Because of this, some think that it doesn't cause allergies like some grains can now. Anyway, back to the wine. The Montefalco Rosso is made of 65% Sangiovese grapes, 15% Sagrantino grapes, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot. It is aged first for 9 months in oak casks, cement casks for 3 months and finally in the bottle for 6 months. Each different part is aged in the oak casks individually before being blended in the cement casks. The final product again has a fruit nose and is not overpowering. Our wine was paired with a local pasta mixed with zucchini and cheese.
The pasta has a nice, nutty texture that pairs very well with the wine. The cheese was somewhat strong, but not overpowering and also worked well with the wine and pasta. Next up was the Sagrantino di Montefalco, which is made from 100% Sagrantino grapes. It is aged for 6 months in French oak barrels, then a further 9 months in a different type of Oak cask. It is then aged for three months in the cement vats and bottle aged for 12 months. This wine is suitable for further aging. It is a rich wine that is very complex. It is a wine that needs to be drunk with food. It's not one that you sit down to after a hard day at work and some triscuts. It needs meat paired with it. If you take a sip of it before you eat a piece of meat, then after, you can really taste the difference. Up last was the Sagrantino di Montefalco Passito, a dessert wine. It was paired with wine cookies and a wine cake. Both were fantastic when paired with the wine. The Passito is also made with 100% Sagrantino grapes. It is aged in Oak casks for 15 months, then cement casks for 3 months and then bottle aged for 12 months. It is a very delicate wine.
After our fantastic tasting, we headed over to Bevagna. It is a medieval town where they still hold a festival every year where everyone comes out in medieval dress. There is still a gentleman there that makes paper the old fashioned way. The very old fashioned way. It was neat to see how they made it and the time that it took. You take for granted that all you have to do now is head on down to the store and get a pack of paper. Then, it took several days to make just half that amount. We headed back to Preci for dinner since we were all somewhat tired.
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