Montefalco is a town situated in the central area of Umbria, near Perugia and it certainly has all the typical historical characteristics of an Umbrian town: founded by the Umbri, it was then conquered by the Romans and later by the Longbards. Then, during the XIV century,it became a free “comune” ruled by merchants and nobles but later lost its sovereignty to an important family, the Trinci. The town then passed under the control of the Papal State until the unification of Italy in the mid XIX Century.
Montefalco’s might resemble a five-peaks stars if observed by a height; the town, in fact, has five points of access, each one paired with a parish church and each one giving onto a street that gets the visitor to the central square. The view from the square is impressive and it gain the town the nickname of “The Balcony of Umbria”.
The town has a strong tradition of woven linen and linen cotton that is still very important and relevant for the city’s economy. But what really make Montefalco a must visit is its wine making tradition that dates back to its Roman days. Montefalco is the centre of the Sagrantino area a bold, earthy dry wine perfect for pairing with sharp, strong flavours like Pecorino, black truffle, and meat-based dishes. Only in the late 1970s Sagrantino was revived by few winemakers (the fathers of the "new" Sagrantino) who learned to tame the grape’s aggressive tannins. Now, more than 2,400 acres of Sagrantino are planted in the region, possibly making it the signature wine of Umbria.
The author
Federico Spadoni
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