Arnaldo Caprai: championing top-quality Sagrantino

Arnaldo Caprai is a winery that defies the inconspicuous nature of Umbria.

A landlocked region in Central Italy, Umbria is the country’s fourth-smallest wine-producing region by volume and lacks any big-name denominations equivalent to Tuscany’s Chianti Classico and Brunello di Montalcino, or Veneto’s Amarone, or Piedmont’s Barolo and Barbaresco.

Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for eight top wines from Arnaldo Caprai

The majority of Umbria’s wine production is focused on the Orvieto DOC, which spans 1,148 of the region’s 12,400 hectares under vine and produces light, summery whites made from Trebbiano and Grechetto which are pleasant enough but hardly profound.

Sangiovese is also widely planted in this rolling landscape and is the key varietal in both the Montefalco Rosso DOC and Torgiano Rosso Riserva, one of Umbria’s two DOCGs.

Arnaldo Caprai produces over 20 different wines in total, utilising local varieties Sagrantino and Grechetto, Tuscan varieties including Sangiovese and Canaiolo, and international varieties including Merlot, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.

The estate’s flagship wine, ‘25 Anni’ Sagrantino Montefalco is arguably the finest expression of the Sagrantino grape, a standard bearer not only for the variety but also the region.