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Luca Bevilacqua

Red Lab 2020

Price: $28.96
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Tasting notes

This is Montepulciano at its most unguarded: ripe cherry and blackberry up front, lifted by bright acidity and soft tannins that come from two weeks of submerged-cap fermentation in fiberglass with no additions whatsoever. At 12.5% ABV from 35-year-old vines on clay at 300 meters, it drinks with a freshness that most Montepulciano at this price point simply does not have.

BodyFruitTanninAcidity
CherryBlackberryPlumBlack Pepper
  • Style: Dry, medium-bodied red; intense ruby; ripe cherry, blackberry, and spice; 12.5% ABV
  • Grapes & Terroir: 100% Montepulciano; organic; clay soils; Pergola Abruzzese; 35-year-old vines; 300m elevation; Atessa, Val di Sangro, Chieti
  • Winemaking: Destemmed; indigenous yeast fermentation in fiberglass with submerged cap (~2 weeks); aged in stainless steel; unfined, unfiltered, no added sulfites; ~1,200 bottles
  • Serving: Serve at 57-61F; 15-20 min decant optional; tulip or standard Bordeaux glass
  • Pairing: Tomato-based pasta, grilled pork sausage, aged Pecorino, slow-cooked bean dishes
  • Similar To: For fans of easy-drinking, fruit-forward natural reds who enjoy Gamay or lighter-style Barbera

Red Lab is 100% Montepulciano from a 0.5-hectare plot in Contrada Querceto, Atessa, in the Val di Sangro valley of the province of Chieti. The vines are approximately 35 years old, trained in the traditional Pergola Abruzzese system, and planted on clay soils at around 300 meters above sea level.

The grapes are destemmed and fermented in fiberglass tanks with a submerged cap for approximately two weeks using only indigenous yeasts. The wine is then aged in stainless steel. No fining, no filtration, and no sulfites are added at any stage. Around 1,200 bottles are produced per vintage.

The name LAB comes from the initials of Luca's two sons, Lorenzo Amerigo and Leonardo Andrea Bevilacqua. The project reflects Luca's approach as a working sommelier who farms and vinifies on his days off from restaurant work, keeping production small and entirely hands-off.

In the glass, the 2020 shows an intense ruby color with aromas of ripe cherry, blackberry, and a prominent spice note. The palate is medium-bodied with soft tannins, lively acidity, and a fresh, fruit-forward finish built for the table rather than the cellar.

The fresh acidity and soft tannins make this a natural match for tomato-based pasta dishes, grilled pork sausages, and aged Pecorino. It also works well alongside slow-cooked bean dishes in the Abruzzese tradition, where the wine's fruit cuts through the richness of the legumes.

Wine details

Dry/Sweet:, Dry
Wine Type:, Red Wine
Wine Style:, Medium Body
Grapes:, Montepulciano
Farming:, Organic
Vintage:, 2020
Alcohol:, 12.5%
Country:, Italy
Region:, Abruzzo
Appellation:, Abruzzo IGT
Bottle Size:, 750ml
Sugar Level:, Zero Added Sugar

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.


Important Compliance Requirements

FedEx and other carriers we might occasionally use can only deliver wine to customers who are 21 years or older. Someone must be at the address to receive the package, carriers don't just drop a package and leave. They must ensure the person receiving the wine is 21 or older.


Re-shipping a Package

If a package is returned to us after three failed delivery attempts, we can only re-ship the wine upon payment of a re-shipping fee, to be determined based on the shipping address and number of bottles. Shipping wine is extremely expensive. We are sorry about this, but we have no other choice. Please make sure there's always someone at the address you enter as your shipping address.

If you'd like to receive a refund for a package that was returned to us after FedEx made three delivery attempts, we can do that but we must keep a $20 refund fee; FedEx charges us a lot of money for returns, unfortunately, I can't stress this enough.


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If you'd like to reroute a package after it's been shipped, we can do so for a $20 re-routing fee. We cannot re-route a package across state borders. For any change of address, please contact us as soon as possible, ideally within 1-2 days from placing the order or we cannot guarantee we'll be able to reroute or change your order's shipping address.


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If you'd like to cancel an order after it's been shipped, we can do so upon payment of a small cancellation fee – the amount depends on the size of the order. Carriers charge us a lot of money to recall a package en-route.


Heat/Frost damage

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Placed an order. What next?

1. You will receive an order confirmation email with your order summary.*

2. As soon as your order ships from the warehouse, usually within 2-3 business days, this applies to all shipping rates, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with your tracking information. 2DAY shipping refers to shipping time; we still need 2-3 business days to prepare an order. We need to pick and pack, QA, add printed collateral, and palletize the orders.

3. Please track your package using the tracking service.

4. The carrier will attempt delivery a maximum of 3 times. After 3 delivery attempts, your package will be sent back to our warehouse.**

*Please ensure your email address is correct; otherwise, you will not receive the order and shipping confirmation emails.

**If delivery is attempted 3 times without success, or if you fail to retrieve your package from the carrier depot by the stated deadline, the shipping fee will not be refunded to the customer.

Returns Policy

If you are not satisfied with your purchase, please contact us at (424) 414-2040 or via e-mail at hello@primalwine.com between 9 am and 5 pm Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Sunday, we would like to understand and try to solve your concerns. We can offer refunds only as store credit.

Producer profile

Luca Bevilacqua

Luca Bevilacqua is a professional sommelier based in Atessa, a town in the lower Val di Sangro valley in the province of Chieti, Abruzzo. After working as a sommelier across Europe for roughly a decade, he returned to his native Abruzzo and began making wine from his father's vineyards. The LAB label takes its name from the initials of his two sons, Lorenzo Amerigo and Leonardo Andrea Bevilacqua.

Bevilacqua farms a couple of hectares of inherited vineyards in Atessa, with vines approximately 35 years old trained in the Pergola Abruzzese system on clay soils at around 300 meters above sea level. The vineyards are farmed organically and have not been treated with synthetic chemicals; only small amounts of copper are applied when needed. Total production across all wines is under 10,000 bottles per year.

Luca carries out the harvest and winemaking on his days off from sommelier work, keeping production deliberately small. His approach is zero-zero: spontaneous fermentation only, no fining, no filtration, no added sulfites, and aging in stainless steel or fiberglass tanks. He works with Abruzzo's indigenous varieties exclusively, including Montepulciano, Trebbiano, Passerina, and Pecorino.

Wine region

Abruzzo, Italy

Abruzzo sits on the central Adriatic side of Italy, bordered to the west by the Apennine Mountains and to the east by the Adriatic Sea. More than 65% of the region is mountainous terrain. The dual influence of sea and mountains creates strong diurnal temperature swings that preserve acidity in the grapes, while the extended Mediterranean sunshine drives reliable ripening. The province of Chieti, in the southern part of the region, produces the largest volume of wine in Abruzzo. Soils across the region range from clay-limestone to sandy flysch and alluvial deposits, with clay-dominant profiles common in the inland hill zones.

The flagship appellation is Montepulciano d'Abruzzo DOC, established in 1968, which spans all four provinces and accounts for approximately 80% of the region's DOC production. Within it, the Colline Teramane subzone in the northern province of Teramo was elevated to DOCG status in 2003. A second DOCG, Tullum (Terre Tollesi), was added in 2019 in the Chieti hills. The Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo DOC covers the region's distinctive dry rose made from Montepulciano, while white wine production centers on Trebbiano d'Abruzzo DOC and revived native varieties including Pecorino and Passerina. The traditional vine training system across the region is the Pergola Abruzzese, a horizontal overhead canopy that shades the fruit from the intense summer sun.

Frequently asked question

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.

Signature on delivery is mandatory for wine deliveries. Please make sure someone is at the shipping address to sign for the package.

If applicable, please consider delivering the package to a business address to ensure someone is available to sign for the package.

We also have the option of delivering the package to a Carrier's store for pickup. Please reach out to us to coordinate.

Carrier will try to delivery a package up to three times before returning the package to us.

See here our shipping policy.

If you miss a delivery and a package gets returned to us we have two options:

1) Reship the package right away: due to the very high cost of shipping and returns, we must charge a re-shipping fee to be determined based on package size and shipping destination.

2) Consolidate the returned package with your next order: this option is free of charge and it's the most popular option.

See here our shipping policy.

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