Tiberio Pecorino Colline Pescaresi 2022

Country: Italy

Region: Abruzzo

Type: White Wine

Grape: Montepulciano

Winemaker Cristiana Tiberio's reputation has been on a steady rise, but many years of patient work lie behind the evolution of her family’s estate.  The winery was established in 2000 near the town of Cugnoli in Abruzzo, inspired by an old vineyard discovered by her father, of super-rare, old-vine Trebbiano Abruzzese, a white grape native to the area. These then-70-year-old vines, trained high in a double pergola to withstand the historical impact of snow during winter months, were practically dead, but she and her brother coaxed them back to health over several years — without a single harvest to show for the efforts of their early years.

Tiberio only produces wines from grapes found in their specific sub-zone of Abruzzo. Cristiana, a trained chemist, is deeply passionate about the hyper-local, attributing the success of her wines to years of careful observation, discovering the distinctive characteristics of their site, vines, and environment. She adds no cover crops to allow the natural grasses that emerge spontaneously beneath specific training systems to thrive, bottles the lees at the end of fermentation to observe their characteristics and how they have adapted to ever-drier conditions, and divides fermentations by specific biotypes. Cristiana's wines are thoughtful and precise, crafted from carefully tended sites, intended to preserve heritage and capture the essence of a place.

Pecorino is an ancient variety that has always grown on the Appennine ridges of the Marche and Abruzzo. A low yielding variety, over the centuries farmers shied away from it, preferring to plant easier-to-grow, more productive varieites. As a result, Pecorino was all but forgotten, and nearly extinct by the 1970s. Today, high yields are less important than they once were and high-quality, interesting grape varieties are sought-after. Pecorino produces wine that is rich in glycerol but also endowed with high total acidity, thereby offering a unique combination of texture and vibrancy. 

Intense aromas and flavors of sage, rosemary, green fig, peach, yellow melon. Full-bodied and bright, with a lingering minerality.