Emidio Pepe - Montepulciano D'Abruzzo 2000 (750ml)
Price: $339.99
| Producer | Emidio Pepe |
| Country | Italy |
| Region | Abruzzo |
| Varietal | Montepulciano |
| Vintage | 2000 |
| Sku | 31331 |
| Size | 750ml |
The bouquet is starting to show some of the lovely secondary layers of complexity that emerge here with sufficient bottle age, as it offers up a complex mélange of black cherries, cigar ash, botanicals, a touch of red curry, a bit of meatiness and a gentle topnote of autumn leaves. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, complex and a bit tarry in personality, with moderate tannins, sound acids and very good length and grip on the focused finish.
Emidio Pepe Description
Emidio Pepe is a singular producer creating amazingly complex age worthy reds and whites in a region of mass produced, overly engineered versions of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo. Though the family has been producing wines here since the end of the 19th Century, the winemaking has remained unchanged philosophically since Emidio Pepe took over the estate in 1964. Since 1997, the business and wine production has been in the hands of the fourth generation of the Pepe family with sisters, Daniela and Sofia. And, more recently, the dynamic Chiara De Iulis Pepe has joined the estate as the fifth generation!
The Pepe vineyards are located in the northern province of Teramo, with siliceous soil rich in lime and iron. The Trebbiano is foot trodden in wooden tubs in order to avoid the contact between the iron presses and the acids of the fruit. The resulting white wines are slightly golden hued, well balanced and complex, with hints of nuts, hay, and yellow fruits. The Montepulciano bares little relation to most other wines of this appellation. These wines are big and bold, filled with intense flavors of dried black cherries, licorice and wild herbs.
The winemaking regime at Pepe follows an uber-natural and artisinal path as well. Grapes are grown biodynamically, hand-harvested, hand-destemmed, naturally fermented and aged 18-24 months in glass-lined tanks. The wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered, without added SO2, and aged in their cellar, in bottle, for continued development. Before release, the wines are decanted by hand into new bottles, and then labeled. An extensive stock of older vintages is kept at the cellar.
Wine Spectator
97 Wine Spectator
"Rustic and well-structured, offering an attractive mix of mature spice box, leather and forest floor notes, with a concentrated core of wild cherry and gamy blackberry fruit. Full-bodied, featuring a long, chewy finish of coffee and iron. Non-blind Emidio Pepe vertical (May 2013). Best from 2015 through 2030."
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