I should have captured tasting notes last night, but I was enjoying it too much. Loved the variety of notes from cherry to earthiness, and a great balance in weight - medium bodied with good tannins on the finish. Love this wine and producer!
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NOSE: velour liqueur. Belgian cherry and wild strawberry jam. Madagascar sour chocolate. An amusing trail of flavors surround it with illumination —cardamom, orange peel, bourbon. MOUTH: broad and sweetly saturating. Structure is thoroughly surrounded by a robust fabric of fruit. Tannins turn to broken clay. Acids accumulate in a sappy brew. Fundamentally brooding darkness is drawn tightly, providing a startling harmonic range ascendant. Fresh. Hissing sweet herbs. Pollen. The finish introduces iodine to stubborn shards of raspberry pottery and brittle olive green chocolate. (feral, imperial aromatized style reminds me a bit of Rayas/Des Tours) Good now-2032.
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First Paolo Bea wine for me. Volatile. Red-fruited. Reminiscent of Musar, with an Italian accent. Then comes some char-and-tar reduction with a distinct streak of green. Some floral top-notes with a hint of sweat. This may not sound so good but for some reason it doesn't really bother me. An interesting bottle of wine.
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Wow, this is drinking brilliantly right now. Give it 30 minutes of air and watch the layers unfold. The nose has a hint of that feral Bea funk coupled with dried cherry and smoked beef. On the palate there is ample dark cherry fruit, savory undertones, medium tannins and high acidity. Tasting notes are useless with a wine like this, but if you love Bea, this one is hitting all of the right notes.
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A legitimate Paolo Bea. Really. nice fruit and would certainly guess more than 15% Sagrantino. Very minimal "high tone" adds to the zip. My last of four and all have been consistent. Drinking well.
Very nice fruit driven Umbria red blend. Mostly red fruit - black cherry, raspberry, boysenberry, random other "wild berry" type flavors. Menthol, leather, tobacco and fresh herb flavors come out toward the end of the palate. Good intensity of both flavors and aromas. Pair with some kind of red meat and it's great.
Day 2 - an unpleasant brett characteristic has developed at the finish. Definitely a wine to drink the day it's opened!
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Absolute magic juice. Felt like it turned dark cherry red with only 5 min in the decanter. I’ve slept on bea watching others fawn over the wines and had low expectations frankly. But this was revelatory. I felt like I could just nurse the bottle for the entirety of my meal. I recall black cherries and perfectly integrated tannins. The wine had such depth probably due to the sagrantino. Very impressed.
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Decanted for around 30 mins. Pale garnet color. Wild nose of tart red cherries and plums with some medicinal herbs, slight bretty funk, some cedar cigar box and just a touch of acetone (VA) coming through. Aromas continued to evolve over the course of the night. Similar flavors on the palate with tart red fruits, sour cherries, spices and funk. Acid is slightly sharp on the tongue but overall balanced, especially with food. Really interesting wine that made me think of Chateau Musar. I enjoyed this much more than my wife.
Continues to be a great food wine. It is also fine on its own, especially when making the food, but it shines as a complement to robustly flavored pasta and meats.
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Another lovely bottle. In balance, great with food and nice on its own. Nothing profound, a great bottle to drink when you want to have some wine and not a an intellectual experience.
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Strawberry on the nose. On the palate, red and black cherry, raspberry, and currants, with a strong earthy herbal note contributed by the Sagrantino; this has light to moderate tannins and good acidity on the medium to long finish. This was an excellent value at about $40 - too bad there's no more at that price,
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Medium ruby color. Nose of turned earth, barnyard, damp leaves, and wild berry compote. Medium bodied on the palate, juicy and mouthcoating with excellent presence and length.
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This is nice and fairly sedate by Bea standards. The sangiovese is definitely dominant and it’s hard to even pick out the sagrantino even though you know it’s there. The nose has a touch of bretty lactic sourness, the palate is mostly clean black cherry fruit with some savory undertones and unresolved tannins. This is delicious and keeps drawing me back for another sniff and sip. Could become profound with time, but where does the brett go from here?
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A worthy baby Bea. A little cloudy and "natural smelling. Moderately high toned, a little barnyard, and delicious fruit. The Bea wines are so unique, even this one with only 15% Sagrantinoi..
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Robe is m ruby and clear except for a bit of fine sediment at the bottom of the bottle. Nose is initially dominated by Brett with red berry fruit underneath. The real thrill is on the palate which is m(+) verve-y acid with pronounced ripe raspberry and red cherry fruit. The acid hangs in along with the fruit for a m(+) long finish. The tannin is m and helps fill out the m body but the acid is the star. I didn’t think you could get this kind of lift out of Sangiovese—another magic trick from Bea. This is probably at peak and will plateau for 3-5 years.
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Scrumptious and wild with muddled little berries, dark-brewed soy sauce, leather, balsamics, chocolate and butter-roasted, pungent tomato sauce. Thrilling wine with a moderate density of fruit; hard not to smile with a glass of this. Great balance until just before the last part of the finish. Vanilla, blueberry, dark charcoal. Spicy and sinks it’s teeth into you. Not sure I see the advantage of aging this so drink now-2023.
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unique wine nose- VA which i would describe more as decomposing fruit than acetone, yet still has a touch of that paint stripping quality mouth - unctuous dark fruit, coats the palate, savage/rustic/wild. explosively good
My second of four bottles purchased (so far). The first bottle was overrun by brett and smelled like a stockyard. This bottle, however, was amazing and wild AF. Popped and poured, aromas of orange rind, grapefruit, pineapple (fight me), dark fruits, teriyaki...I mean...seriously? Finish has this awesome savory thing going on. And it all works folks. Enjoyed over three hours and it just got better and better. Killer vintage for San Valentino.
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Huge Bea fan here. This bottle seemed completely overrun by brett...the smell of an active stockyard was overwhelming and it was very difficult to pull anything else out. An extended decant didn't help. Based off notes I've read from others, this seems to be well outside of what should be expected. I have three more bottles and will open another soon...for science.
Wow. This is not a subtle bottle. Earth, mushrooms, dark fruit, tannins, acid, and a bunch of other stuff, most of it tasty, hit the palate. The nose is good, but does not give away the confrontation on the palate. Enjoyed this after the initial blast, especially with a deeply flavored pasta. Very glad to have more, and intrigued as to where it will go, I am guessing upwards. Love the fact that Bea does wines this way.
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2/24/2024 - cclearningwine wrote: 94 Points
I should have captured tasting notes last night, but I was enjoying it too much. Loved the variety of notes from cherry to earthiness, and a great balance in weight - medium bodied with good tannins on the finish. Love this wine and producer!
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7/29/2022 - Putnam Weekley Likes this wine: 93 Points
NOSE: velour liqueur. Belgian cherry and wild strawberry jam. Madagascar sour chocolate. An amusing trail of flavors surround it with illumination —cardamom, orange peel, bourbon. MOUTH: broad and sweetly saturating. Structure is thoroughly surrounded by a robust fabric of fruit. Tannins turn to broken clay. Acids accumulate in a sappy brew. Fundamentally brooding darkness is drawn tightly, providing a startling harmonic range ascendant. Fresh. Hissing sweet herbs. Pollen. The finish introduces iodine to stubborn shards of raspberry pottery and brittle olive green chocolate. (feral, imperial aromatized style reminds me a bit of Rayas/Des Tours) Good now-2032.
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3/14/2022 - Force5 Likes this wine:
First Paolo Bea wine for me. Volatile. Red-fruited. Reminiscent of Musar, with an Italian accent. Then comes some char-and-tar reduction with a distinct streak of green. Some floral top-notes with a hint of sweat. This may not sound so good but for some reason it doesn't really bother me. An interesting bottle of wine.
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9/9/2021 - BillBell73 Likes this wine:
Wow, this is drinking brilliantly right now. Give it 30
minutes of air and watch the layers unfold. The nose has a hint of that feral Bea funk coupled with dried cherry and smoked beef. On the palate there is ample dark cherry fruit, savory undertones, medium tannins and high acidity. Tasting notes are useless with a wine like this, but if you love Bea, this one is hitting all of the right notes.
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6/7/2021 - wardamnwine Likes this wine: 94 Points
Lovely wine, I’m gonna pick up a few more for my cellar.
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5/1/2021 - cweiss wrote:
A legitimate Paolo Bea. Really. nice fruit and would certainly guess more than 15% Sagrantino. Very minimal "high tone" adds to the zip.
My last of four and all have been consistent. Drinking well.
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4/4/2021 - AlphaMikeFoxtrot wrote: 89 Points
Very nice fruit driven Umbria red blend. Mostly red fruit - black cherry, raspberry, boysenberry, random other "wild berry" type flavors. Menthol, leather, tobacco and fresh herb flavors come out toward the end of the palate. Good intensity of both flavors and aromas. Pair with some kind of red meat and it's great.
Day 2 - an unpleasant brett characteristic has developed at the finish. Definitely a wine to drink the day it's opened!
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3/29/2021 - jpp10780 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Absolute magic juice. Felt like it turned dark cherry red with only 5 min in the decanter. I’ve slept on bea watching others fawn over the wines and had low expectations frankly. But this was revelatory. I felt like I could just nurse the bottle for the entirety of my meal. I recall black cherries and perfectly integrated tannins. The wine had such depth probably due to the sagrantino. Very impressed.
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2/14/2021 - Rich S Likes this wine: 92 Points
Decanted for around 30 mins. Pale garnet color. Wild nose of tart red cherries and plums with some medicinal herbs, slight bretty funk, some cedar cigar box and just a touch of acetone (VA) coming through. Aromas continued to evolve over the course of the night. Similar flavors on the palate with tart red fruits, sour cherries, spices and funk. Acid is slightly sharp on the tongue but overall balanced, especially with food. Really interesting wine that made me think of Chateau Musar. I enjoyed this much more than my wife.
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2/8/2021 - IJC Likes this wine:
Immediately sensed a feral quality - asphalt, earth, blood. Exhilarating. Sharply focused, well defined; thrilling. Drink now.
Rated +2 on a scale of -1 to +3.
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2/7/2021 - Rechrom wrote: 92 Points
Drinking very well with great depth of fruit. Lovely balance. Outstanding with food.
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2/4/2021 - Rechrom wrote: 92 Points
Continues to be a great food wine. It is also fine on its own, especially when making the food, but it shines as a complement to robustly flavored pasta and meats.
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1/10/2021 - thesternowl wrote: flawed
Corked. What a crying shame.
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12/30/2020 - cweiss Likes this wine:
No volatility or funk noted. Fruit still very attractive but less lively and I'd drink this bottling sooner rather than later.
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12/13/2020 - SnowMeadow Likes this wine: 92 Points
Really distinctive. A feral, animal quality from some brett and a tightrope act of tannins and fruit executed with poise.
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11/23/2020 - Rechrom wrote: 92 Points
Another lovely bottle. In balance, great with food and nice on its own. Nothing profound, a great bottle to drink when you want to have some wine and not a an intellectual experience.
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10/4/2020 - RichardP wrote: 92 Points
Strawberry on the nose. On the palate, red and black cherry, raspberry, and currants, with a strong earthy herbal note contributed by the Sagrantino; this has light to moderate tannins and good acidity on the medium to long finish. This was an excellent value at about $40 - too bad there's no more at that price,
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9/7/2020 - dougsmith Likes this wine: 93 Points
Medium ruby color. Nose of turned earth, barnyard, damp leaves, and wild berry compote. Medium bodied on the palate, juicy and mouthcoating with excellent presence and length.
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6/26/2020 - BillBell73 Likes this wine:
This is nice and fairly sedate by Bea standards. The sangiovese is definitely dominant and it’s hard to even pick out the sagrantino even though you know it’s there. The nose has a touch of bretty lactic sourness, the palate is mostly clean black cherry fruit with some savory undertones and unresolved tannins. This is delicious and keeps drawing me back for another sniff and sip. Could become profound with time, but where does the brett go from here?
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5/16/2020 - Rechrom wrote: 92 Points
Flavorful, in good balance, works very well with a full flavored pasta, nice enough on its own too. Earth and fruit with a slight edginess.
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3/20/2020 - IJC Likes this wine:
Only a trace of the youthful rustic edges remain, tannins now well resolved with the fruit, softening its bite, a taste reminiscent of marmalade.
Rated +1 on a scale of -1 to 3
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11/21/2019 - cweiss wrote:
A worthy baby Bea. A little cloudy and "natural smelling. Moderately high toned, a little barnyard, and delicious fruit.
The Bea wines are so unique, even this one with only 15% Sagrantinoi..
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8/4/2019 - dasvino Likes this wine: 93 Points
Great vintage for this. Elegant at 13.5% compared the the 2010 and 2011 bruisers at 15%. Agree with others that this is ready to be enjoyed.
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8/1/2019 - MikeJK Likes this wine: 93 Points
Robe is m ruby and clear except for a bit of fine sediment at the bottom of the bottle. Nose is initially dominated by Brett with red berry fruit underneath. The real thrill is on the palate which is m(+) verve-y acid with pronounced ripe raspberry and red cherry fruit. The acid hangs in along with the fruit for a m(+) long finish. The tannin is m and helps fill out the m body but the acid is the star. I didn’t think you could get this kind of lift out of Sangiovese—another magic trick from Bea. This is probably at peak and will plateau for 3-5 years.
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8/1/2019 - cincybt Likes this wine: 94 Points
Beautiful and more approachable than Bea’s Montefalco.
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7/26/2019 - Rollerball wrote: 94 Points
Scrumptious and wild with muddled little berries, dark-brewed soy sauce, leather, balsamics, chocolate and butter-roasted, pungent tomato sauce. Thrilling wine with a moderate density of fruit; hard not to smile with a glass of this. Great balance until just before the last part of the finish. Vanilla, blueberry, dark charcoal. Spicy and sinks it’s teeth into you. Not sure I see the advantage of aging this so drink now-2023.
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6/21/2019 - soyhead wrote:
unique wine
nose- VA which i would describe more as decomposing fruit than acetone, yet still has a touch of that paint stripping quality
mouth - unctuous dark fruit, coats the palate, savage/rustic/wild.
explosively good
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6/5/2019 - thesternowl Likes this wine: 93 Points
My second of four bottles purchased (so far). The first bottle was overrun by brett and smelled like a stockyard. This bottle, however, was amazing and wild AF. Popped and poured, aromas of orange rind, grapefruit, pineapple (fight me), dark fruits, teriyaki...I mean...seriously? Finish has this awesome savory thing going on. And it all works folks. Enjoyed over three hours and it just got better and better. Killer vintage for San Valentino.
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5/21/2019 - thesternowl wrote: flawed
Huge Bea fan here. This bottle seemed completely overrun by brett...the smell of an active stockyard was overwhelming and it was very difficult to pull anything else out. An extended decant didn't help. Based off notes I've read from others, this seems to be well outside of what should be expected. I have three more bottles and will open another soon...for science.
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4/19/2019 - Rechrom wrote: 92 Points
Wow. This is not a subtle bottle. Earth, mushrooms, dark fruit, tannins, acid, and a bunch of other stuff, most of it tasty, hit the palate. The nose is good, but does not give away the confrontation on the palate. Enjoyed this after the initial blast, especially with a deeply flavored pasta. Very glad to have more, and intrigued as to where it will go, I am guessing upwards. Love the fact that Bea does wines this way.
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