Yeah but as pointed out on another thread on this forum I think, that bottle is totally oxidized and clearly not correct.
I’ve had pretty good experiences with aged Pepe, but it’s not something I’ve collected in my own cellar. Babbo had a ton of '06 Pepe Trebbiano for a low price and I’d drink it there regularly up until 2-3 years ago. It was beautiful and had plenty of life left. In Italy, I had two bottles of '78 Pepe Trebbiano a few years ago, one of which was profound and the other good but showing its age. The color of the '78 Pepe Trebbiano was youthful with a normal level of oxidation for a white of that age, far lighter in color than this reviewer’s 2016 Pepe.
At La Festa del Barolo this year, I had a really enjoyable '16 Fonte Canale from Tiberio. Frankly I haven’t been that impressed by young (2020 recently) Fonte Canale, but with an additional 4 years of age perhaps the wine starts to blossom. It’s a very high acid, piercing wine in its youth presumably due to the lack of time in oak. I do think I prefer the funkier flavor profile and creamier, broader mouthfeel of the Pepe Trebbianos over the Tiberio house style, but clearly Tiberio’s winemaking consistency is higher.
Oh, but… how can you say that… he’s an MW!!!
Just kidding. Bloke’s completely clueless and the more you watch of him (which I by no means recommend, it’s mostly a waste of time), the more that impression is likely to gain ground. If anything, it just shows how certain things (such as “titles”) should not be taken at face value.
Maybe not the right thread to post this, but I just had a 2023 Tiberio Trebbiano d’Abruzzo ($19) that kicked the pants off the 2021 Pepe TdA ($70). I ordered a case.
Tried close to all except a bottling or two of the top reds (have one of them somewhere in the cellar). Agree that Tiberio is very good, the Pecorino is probably my favorite of the two entry white wines.
I have somehow missed trying Pepe on the other hand and found it interesting (not necessarily surprising!) that you felt Tiberio showed better.
The relative value referred to the price being more or less similar in Eur/dollar, which means the importer in US buys the wines at significantly lower wholesale price than European importers.
I have seen that for Bordeaux in general, and a some Italian wineries does the same.
To clarify further, I did not have them side-by-side. However, I had three bottles of the 2021 Pepe (not the VV) in the last year and found them all underwhelming regardless of the price. With the one bottle of 2023 Tiberio, my wife and I were both “Wow. We need more of this now.” Given the depth of flavors, the acidity level, the ageability, AND the price, buying more was a very easy purchase. Hell, it is even cheap enough to use as cooking wine.
wasn’t there a signature possibility on the old platform?