Emidio Pepe EMIDIO PEPE Montepulciano d’Abruzzo 2022

Description

Emidio Pepe’s 2022 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo flaunts its pedigree with elegant aromas of dark fruit, smoke, tar, and powdered licorice. Montepulciano d’Abruzzo performs well in warm vintages like 2018, thanks to the region’s cool mountain climate; here it achieves deep structural richness, balanced by vibrant acidity. The tannins are present yet polished, followed by delicate notes of dried herbs and crushed stone.

Emidio Pepe is a singular producer who crafts extraordinarily complex reds, whites, and rosés in Abruzzo, all worthy of aging. The family has been making wine since the late 19th century, and their winemaking philosophy has remained essentially unchanged.

Pepe’s vineyards lie in the northern province of Teramo, on soils rich in clay and limestone. The top 40 centimeters are clay, while beneath lies solid limestone rock. Trebbiano grapes are crushed by foot in wooden vats for two reasons: to avoid contact between iron presses and the fruit’s acids, and for the added textural complexity that comes from the subtle maceration as the broken skins impart their character to the juice. The resulting white wines are slightly golden, well-balanced, and complex, with notes of dried fruit, hay, and yellow fruits. The Montepulciano bears little resemblance to most others of the denomination; these are big, bold wines, brimming with the intense flavors of dried cherries, licorice, and wild herbs.

Pepe’s winemaking regimen follows a super-natural, artisanal path. The grapes are farmed biodynamically, harvested by hand, destemmed by hand, fermented with native yeasts, and aged 18–24 months in glazed cement tanks. The wines are bottled unfiltered and left to mature further in bottle in the cellar. Before release, bottles of Montepulciano that are at least 10 years old are hand-decanted into new bottles and labeled. The cellar also holds an extensive stock of older vintages.