The 2002 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Vecchie Vigne intrigues the senses with a cool-toned mix of dried strawberries, cinnamon and dusty rose. It washes across the palate with ease, lifted and pure in feel, with pretty red berries and a subtle tug of flinty minerality. Fruit concentration lingers, along with gentle tannins and a pleasant burst of inner sweetness, as the 2002 finishes with cheek-puckering tension. There’s a lightness of being here that may not promise a long life, but is very pleasurable today. The 2002 vintage was quite cold, and the wine was so austere in its youth that the Pepe family decided not to release it at first. Because of the library program, the 2002 is now available in the market.