Tiberio - Colle Vota Montepulciano d'Abruzzo 2020

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 1150 feet/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 50 years old so impressive that he decided to change his and his family’s destiny.

Over a decade ago, Cristiana and Antonio, daughter and son of Riccardo, took over reins of Tiberio. Cristiana, a chemistry specialist who also teaches college sommelier and enology classes, handles winemaking and is the global brand ambassador. Antonio leads grapegrowing and viticulture. The dynamic team have established Tiberio, and Abruzzo, in the forefront of leading-edge wine making and renown in this central part of Italy. Today, Tiberio farms 74 acres/30 hectares of vines.

Colle Vota a single vineyard Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOP wine. The Montepulciano from the Colle Vota vineyard has different characteristics that separate it neatly from all the other Montepulciano we grow at Tiberio. The bunches and berries are much smaller, with crunchier and thicker skins. Colle Vota Montepulciano also takes longer to mature, and this vineyard’s specific microclimate provides a longer hang time, producing a truly unique Montepulciano wine.

100% massal selections of Montepulciano d’Abruzzo transplanted to a higher single vineyard, resulting in a specific biotype uniquely adapted to its microclimate; vines 24 years old; limestone, marly clay over sandstone bedrock soils, uniquely suited to cooler, wetter conditions; 14.5% alcohol; hand harvested late October; fermented using native yeasts in stainless steel tanks; malolactic fermentation and aging in tank; bottled unfined and unfiltered; aged in bottle before release.

"The 2020 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Colle Vota is a spice box on the nose, with wilted violets and hints of spiced-orange, white smoke, clove and dried black cherries. It’s pleasantly sweet upon entry, with a cool-toned feel and lavender-laced wild berry fruits that gain in tension and complexity as a flinty-mineral concentration forms toward the close. This resonates like liquid velvet, leaving sweet tannins offset by hints of sour citrus, finishing long and potent. The balance within is otherworldly. This elegant and harmonious Colle Vota will pay dividends in the cellar, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it warrants a high score down the road." - 96 Points, Vinous

Producer: Tiberio

Country: Italy

Region: Abruzzo

Varietal: Montepulciano d'Abruzzo

Appellation: Montepulciano d'Abruzzo

Vintage: 2020

Size: 750ml