95pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

This is one of the more precious and fragile reds from Abruzzo, a mountainous region known for hearty flavors and abundantly full-bodied wines. The 2020 Montepulciano d'Abruzzo knocks that paradigm onto its side. The certified organic wine reveals subtle veils of wild berry fruit, rose, iron ore and blood orange. The wine shows a dark garnet color with finely polished tannins. Balanced acidity gives hot-vintage fruit an extra boost.

About The Wine

2020 is the first release of both single vineyards at Emidio Pepe: Casa Pepe & Branella. These two wines replace the one Montepulciano d'Abruzzo from old vines. That is to say, there will only be these two cru wines and not, also a third non-vineyard designated wine.

Importer's Notes

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 process has remained philosophically unchanged since Emidio Pepe took over the estate in 1964. The business and wine production has been in the hands of the fourth generation of the Pepe family with sisters, Daniela and Sofia, since 1997. And more recently, Daniela's daughter, the dynamic Chiara de Iulis Pepe has joined the estate as the fifth generation! Chiara's sister, Elisa, is also now in charge of the agriturismo at the winery.

Biodynamic