2021 Tiberio Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, Abruzzo, Italy

ABOUT THIS WINE

100% massal selection Montepulciano; alcohol: 14.5%; grown in 2 plots at 350 meters altitude; hand harvested; fermented in stainless steel using only indigenous yeasts 20 days; aged 3 months in stainless steel tanks and bottle.

ABOUT THIS PRODUCER

The story of Azienda Agricola Tiberio rings more like a new world tale than one from the old world of the ancient lands beneath the Majella and Gran Sasso mountains in Abruzzo. At 350 meters, twenty three miles inland from the seaside city of Pescara near the hillside town of Cugnoli, Riccardo Tiberio found an old plot of Trebbiano Abruzzese vines roughly 60 years old so impressive that he decided to change his and his family’s destiny. He knew that Trebbiano Abruzzese vines were a rarity and not at all to be confused with Trebbiano Toscano and other similar-looking but altogether different varieties that had been mistakenly planted instead. As the export manager for a well known cantina in the region, Riccardo knew well what Abruzzo grapes could offer and what the modern world expected.

In 2008, Riccardo Tiberio handed over the reins of the winery to his highly competent children, daughter Cristiana and son Antonio. The role of agronomist goes to Antonio while Cristiana handles the winemaking duties. While Cristiana has traveled the world, she believes “that you can only truly make a wine with the greatest expression of the place if you have lived there and really understand the climate and sense of the place.”