White WineEmidio Pepe Trebbiano d’Abruzzo 2018
Azienda Agricola Emidio Pepe
Emidio Pepe’s Trebbiano is the ultimate argument that subtraction can be a catalyst. In a world where winemakers add cultured yeast, sulfur, enzymes, oak chips, and a dozen other interventions to control outcomes, Pepe removed them all — and produced a wine that consistently ranks among Italy’s finest whites. The 2018 vintage is extraordinary: the warmth of the year gave the Trebbiano grape a concentration it rarely achieves, while the cement-tank aging and bottle maturation added layers of honey, toasted almond, and waxy texture that make this taste nothing like the thin, neutral Trebbiano most people know. This is a wine that makes you reconsider what you thought you knew about a grape — and that reconsideration is Pepe’s greatest legacy.
$6013% proof