Montefalco Rosso is a blend of grapes including Sagrantino and Sangiovese and it always offers a slightly more accessible and versatile personality that makes it easier to pair with your favorite meat-based dishes. However, the 2019 Montefalco Rosso Riserva (packaged with a black label) shows us how much depth and complexity can also be achieved with this combination of local varieties. The wine is intense and especially concentrated thanks to ripe fruit and careful oak aging. You feel the force of Sagrantino's tannic imprint, but that power is well managed and contained. With dark and chewy fruit, this is a wine you sink your teeth into.

This wine was not produced in the 2014 vintage, and fruit from that year went into the entry-level Montefalco Rosso instead. However, the 2015 Montefalco Rosso Riserva is a generous and radiant wine that offers accessible tones of black fruit, cherry and savory spice. The blend sees a large element of Sangiovese, and that grape shines bright in this wine, thanks to its elegant tones of wild berry, rose and pressed violet.

The 2013 Montefalco Rosso Riserva has had ample time to expand and grow in volume thanks to some extra bottle aging. This is a fine and beautifully detailed red wine with a bouquet that incorporates floral elements, wild rose, forest berry and savory spice. The tannins are silky and almost powdery in texture, but the wine delivers a generous mid-weight style overall.

The 2010 Montefalco Rosso Riserva is an excellent wine that delivers both power and grace. This achievement should not go underestimated. It is easy for Montefalco Rosso (a blend of Sagrantino and Sangiovese) to show muscle, brawn and enormous structure, because those qualities come in abundance - especially with Sangrantino. It is far more difficult to deliver harmony and this wine does exactly that. Dark fruit nuances are followed by spice, barbecue smoke and black licorice.

The 2009 Montefalco Rosso Riserva bursts forth with compelling and immediate personality. After a few minutes in the glass, aromas of chocolate, spice and tobacco begin to appear. Marco ages the wine in French oak for 20 months and uses standard blending proportions of 70-15-15 Sangiovese, Merlot and Sagrantino. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2022. Marco Caprai is a person I have come to deeply admire over the years. He can be rough around the edges, but I suppose this trait has served him well. No matter how you slice it, he is a formidable ambassador for Umbria, Sagrantino and, of course, his brand. He is one of the most talented wine promoters and communicators in Italy today. Importer: Folio Fine Partners; www.foliowine.com