The legendary Emidio Pepe Estate recently celebrated its 50th anniversary. However, the family has been handing down secrets of one of the most admired vigneron dynasties for five generations. Emidio Pepe started making wine from their family’s prized sites in 1899, but it wasn’t until 1964 that his grandson, also Emidio Pepe, began crafting the world-class Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, or “black gold,” that would make the name synonymous with greatness. With hundreds of thousands of bottles in their subterranean cellar, the family reverently holds library vintages of this famous wine that date all the way back to 1964. Over more than fifty years in this treasured spot, the octogenarian Emidio has become in tune with his vines and the terroir that brings them life. Today, his daughters, Daniela and Sofia, and his granddaughter, Chiara, work by his side and commune with the nature that has been producing Italy’s true cult wine for half a century. Genuine terroirists in the purest sense, the Pepes tend their sliver of land that lies just a half-hour from the Adriatic Sea with reverential care. Today’s wine is crafted from the Montepulciano grape, which is a distant cousin to Sangiovese. Unlike anything you will ever taste when made by this remarkable, close-knit family, their flagship Montepulciano d’Abruzzo delivers the soul of the family and their treasured soil, revealing a wine of unparalleled grandeur, especially when held in reserve, like today’s example.
Rooted predominantly in clay with southeast-facing exposure, these vines are farmed with certified organic and biodynamic practices and are only treated with copper sulfate and biodynamic treatments. The 1983 vintage was very warm with moderating cool nights and the ideal amount of rainfall. The carefully selected grapes are hand-harvested in traditional wooden tubs. Once they reach the cellar, the fruit is destemmed entirely by hand then vinified with only natural yeast in small, glass-lined cement tanks where it ages for two years, which reveals a purity that is simply without equal. The wine is never sulfured during the fermentation, aging or bottling process. Afterward, the wine is bottled without fining or filtration then aged for a minimum of 19 years before release. This particular library wine has aged in bottle for just over three decades. Before release, Rosa, or Mama Pepe, decants the bottles by hand. They believe that filtering and filtrating the wine removes essential elements of the finished wine, but that nature itself knows what to omit over the aging process—hence the practice of decanting. The resulting wine retains every ounce of personality, purity, balance and sense of place.
Highlighting its 33 years of age on sight, Emidio Pepe’s 1983 Montepulciano di Abruzzo displays a beautiful light garnet red core that quickly moves to light garnet and orange reflections with heavy hues of amber on the rim which move an inch into the core. The nose slowly awakens and evolves every few minutes in the glass so be patient. It begins to reveal complex aromas of cherry, red plum and dried orange peel woven into sandalwood, cedar, pipe tobacco, aged balsamic, black truffle, dried rose petal and a beautiful touch of wet rock. The elegant, medium-plus bodied palate possesses a slight angularity and tension to the fruit, which lends a pristine lift to the mature flavors that envelope the senses. Notes of sour cherry and tart red plum are layered with savory complexity in the form of mushroom, orange peel, and wildflowers, then conclude in a profound, lingering finish of leather, tobacco, and crushed stones. Decant for sediment and let sit in the decanter for 20 minutes before serving. Serving in a bordeaux glass is ideal, but a burgundy stem also works very well. A guaranteed memorable experience, this is a wine that will be a perfect addition to any night with your closest friends.
