Once on life support, the sagrantino grape, little known outside of Umbria and then almost lost to cultivation, now revived and the source of some extraordinary wines.
Italy: Marco Caprai
Marco Caprai, one of Italy’s foremost winemakers, visited me in East Hampton recently, and I had the opportunity to taste some extraordinary wines with him. He specializes in sagrantino, a grape once little known outside of its home in Umbria, a beautiful region in central Italy. When Arnaldo Caprai, Marco’s father, acquired the land in 1971, the sagrantino grape was nearly an endangered species, its territory down to a handful of hectares. There are now about 250 acres cultivated around the hillside village of Montefalco. The reason why Sagrantino de Montefalco revived and currently is not just known but much sought after by wine connoisseurs is very much due to Mr. Caprai.
Winemaking is among the oldest of pursuits, but it is not fixed or stagnant. Marco Caprai realized at a very early age that while tradition must be respected, creativity and innovation are required for both the wine and the business to be successful. Most of all, he understood the potential of a grape that had been grown for centuries in that area, but remained essentially local in consumption. After finishing his enology studies in the late 1980s and becoming manager of his father’s small winery, he worked to expand and improve both vineyard management and cellar techniques, in effect resurrecting the winery and the uniqueness of the terroir. Italy is after all a country of regional foods and regional wines.
Sagrantino is often termed a powerful wine, dark and concentrated and lush. But to me the wine is much more. The power is there but it is tempered by the kind of nuance and balance that you find only in great wines. Sagrantino is quite high in polyphenols, compounds derived from the grape skins. They contribute tannin—gentle and nonaggressive ones in this case—that enhance a wine’s ability to age well, and they are the basis for the antioxidant health claims for red wines.
Blackberry and blueberry are apparent in the sagrantino nose, and the oak aging contributes hints of vanilla. Though high in alcohol and tannins, the wines are neither hot nor harsh. The ones I sampled were just about perfect in balancing all the elements that make a red so pleasurable.
For the best harvests, Mr. Caprai produces Arnaldo Caprai Sagrantino de Montefalco, 25 Anni. First made in 1996, for the 25th anniversary of the winery, subsequent vintages have retained the 25 Anni designation. It is a highly complex and elegant wine, and a breathtakingly good one. It consistently tops the Italian wine awards—the 2001 was Italy’s wine of the year—and the 2000 vintage earned 97 points from Robert Parker in The Wine Advocate. Recent vintages sell for about $100.
Arnaldo Caprai Sagrantino de Montefalco Collepiano (about $55) may not have the cult wine glamour of the 25 Anni, but it offers a marvelous drinking experience. Full bodied, with a rich fruit profile and layered with taste, it is a delight from the first sniff to the long layered finish. Like all sagrantinos it is excellent with a wide range of foods. The truffles of Umbria come immediately to mind.
Montefalco Rosso, an everyday wine from Caprai, is a blend of primarily sangiovese, with sangrantino and merlot. The result is soft, aromatic, focused and rich. The spotlight might be on Mr. Caprai for top quality sagrantinos, but this $20 red blend shows that he knows how to make a good value wine.
Mr. Caprai is a hard working winemaker, one who cares deeply about the quality of all his wines. He continues to experiment and I’ll predict that his wines will get even better in future years. Based on our conversations I also expect we will see him again in East Hampton with some of those forthcoming vintages.
