WFSNY Events
17
OCT | 2018
Dinner at Racines with the wines of Emidio Pepe
Member Jack Gordon brings us a spectacular evening at Racines with Chiara De lulis Pepe who will share with us the portfolio of wines from the Estate of Emidio Pepe. The star of Abruzzi, these wines are among the best in Italy and have been grown naturally and vinified using traditional techniques since the first vintage in 1964. Perhaps the oldest and most genuine ‘natural wines’ in Italy and sought after by collectors around the world. The wines will be complemented by the cuisine of noted Michelin-starred chef, Paul Liebrandt who will be cooking at Racines during a limited special engagement.
ABOUT EMEDIO PEPE:
"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.”- Importer
"There’s not much I can add to all that has been said and written about this famous estate in recent years. Only 15 hectares (certified organically farmed) and about 80,000 bottles a year are produced (and much sought after by collectors everywhere). If anything, I wish to point out that the wines are actually getting even better, if that’s at all possible.”- Ian D’Agata
ABOUT CHEF PAUL LIEBRANDT:
ABOUT RACINES: