EMIDIO PEPE AND THE TRUE (GREAT) WINE

 

Many times, my friends—more or less skilled — asked me how I understand that a wine is truly great.

About greatness meaning in a wine is debatable, but certainly, after years of events, winery tours, dinners with friends, discussions with producers, and above all a lot of tastings, for sure I can say what all great wines have in common (more or less), or rather, all true, authentic wines, the expression of the land from which they come, and not of a process — however perfect — born on the paper and made possible by winemaking techniques in the cellar.

The development on the mouth and the persistence.

A great wine enters softly, almost like a faint whisper, leaving you—especially the first few times—with an initial feeling of bewilderment.

All this, however, lasts a few seconds, because then, slowly, moment by moment, the wine grows, and with it both the tactile sensations and the intensity of the flavor, but without ever going overboard and above all without ever compromising the most important property of a wine: the drinkability.

It's a Rossinian crescendo, really endless in some cases, sometimes lasting for entire minutes, during which even without the wine in your mouth, you still perceive its flavor.

Exactly the opposite what happens (almost always) when you drink “built” wines, in which the nose is incredibly powerful and the tasting always starts explosively, but like a firecracker after a while it all goes away, and almost nothing remains in the mouth.

Because in 2026 a wine can be built practically 100% by design: color, aromas, intensity, complexity, aftertaste. The only trait that (maybe) still can't be created in a laboratory is the persistence.

Do you Want an example, staying in Italy?

Emidio Pepe’s wines, a great Abruzzo producer who passed away a few weeks ago. Over the years, he created an almost unique style of "rustic elegance," which his daughters Daniela and Sofia have further refined over the last decade, reducing the presence of defects that, in some cases, severely limited some vintages.

Long-lived wines, in some cases difficult to approach at the beginning , but able to acquire complexity and elegance over the years without losing their character.

Recently, I've drunk their 2017 Montepulciano, the 2022 Trebbiano, and the 2024 Cerasuolo.

Three different sides of the same truth. 

Three wines different for structure, complexity, and evolution, but with the same characteristic: a subtle entry, a Rossinian crescendo, excellent drinkability, and a very long persistence.

Are they expensive? For sure they're not cheap wines but they have great character, authenticity, and personality.

And certainly, if I had to recommend to you a bottle for (about) 50/70 euros, Emidio Pepe would be one of the addresses I would tell you to go to.