Always looking to broaden our horizons, we were recently sent samples from the Tenuta Cavalier Pepe winery in the Campania region of Italy (just above the “toe” of Italy’s boot if you will.) Their vineyards are set at a generally high altitude of ranging from 350-500 meters above sea level and the 40 hectares they occupy cover several different soil types ranging from clay to calcareous to a bit sandy. The winery has and continues to be a family operation with patriarch, Angelo Pepe originally founding it and his daughter, Milena starting to take over operations these days.
Italy’s wine regions can be a bit confusing as they have sub-regions within other regions. As it sits, this winery produces wines in the DOCG’s of: Greco di Tufo, Taurasi, and Fiano di Avellino. These are actually the only DOCG (the more common classification is DOC) regions in Southern Italy. In addition to other grapes, Tenuta Cavalier Pepe makes use of the local varieties of white Anglianico, Fiano, and Greco for their white wines as well as red Anglianico for their red wines.
As for the bottles, they are overall quite wonderful, especially the reds which can offer up a great world of profundity while at the same time never being overly heavy. And the quality/price ratio seems hard to beat as well their ability to be paired with meals that is indescribable.
