Ep. 157 Monty Waldin interviews Elisabetta Geppetti (Fattoria Le Pupille) | Discover Italian Regions: Tuscany / Toscana

Italian wine podcast. Chinching with Italian wine people. Hello. This is the Italian wine podcast. My name is Montebaldin. My guest today is Elizabeth Jibetty. Elizabeth's winery is called Lepupile. Fattoria Pupile. It was important. Fattoria. Elizabeth. Betha's winery. It's called Fattoria Lepopile, and it's in the Morolino Discansano region on the Tuscan Coast South West Tuscany, welcome. Southwest. It's a very south. Yeah. Very. Same coast than Bulgaria more on the south. Okay. So how did you end up in Ganzano? It's, it's a quite a long story. It started many years ago when I I was very young, I fell in love with the with the wine with countryside, with country life, and But are you are you from Tuscany then? Yeah. From from Tuscany. Which area? My mother's family is from the area Okay. While my father's family is from pizza. So I grew up between, Livorno and pizza. I started in pizza. So that's all on coast or Wall or Mediterranean coast? Oh, yes. Of course. Of course. More on the north of South County. Wisconsin it's more on the south. Main, is not cities or town in the air eyes, Graceto. That's the name of the province as well. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And, was telling you that, was studying art history in peace art history. Art history. For some years, I went on, sharing my life between, my studies and, this is a small family one Mary. And then at the end, the wine one. Right. When was that then? How many years ago was that? My first harvest alone in eighty five. It was twenty. I was twenty. Twenty years old. Twenty years old. That's used to be a traditional, tuscany farm where family was producing, vegetables, olive oil. We used to have cows. Of course. It's very famous for cows and horses. Then in the sixties, we started to bottle the first wine. And in the seventies, when the doc, Maurizansano, has been created, we have been between the first wineries together with the container cooperative, of course. The local property. Yeah. To produce the Marlina is Cantano. So the the first, bottles, from Popila were from seventy eight that has been the first vintage for this denomination. Really? So you were absolutely in the heart of the of the Morolino story. At that time, we were just few producers. So in a way, it was it was also quite difficult to promote this denomination, especially because the novel bag of producing great wines in Tasca he started some years after in the middle, of the eighties. So that went about further north in Bulgaria and things like that. Yeah? Yes. Especially, because of, Sasekaya and, Antinori's family, Jokomotakis. It used to be also our winemaker consulting until, ninety six ninety seven, some ninety seven, something like this. How do you feel about the changes in the regency as you're one of the pioneers of Ganzano. Do you do you see investors coming in doing good things, bad things? This happened in the early starting from two thousand. A lot of investors, especially families that were already renowned for some other denominations. So Kianti, and then also people from the north of Italy. So there was a kind of, really. How can I say? An invasion. An invasion. But I mean invaders sometimes they do two things. They they want to change the status quo, but they could also can bring innovation. So there must have been a good side and the bad side. It's it's difficult to say. I mean, at the beginning, this story was, was some thing that could really, help the area, the Marima, to be more known, especially internationally international countries. I mean, you say also as your markets. But then, the problem for me has been that, on one side, though, there was a lot of interest for the area. But on the other side, the the consortium. The grandmother's Wangrover's, Not a Wangrover. The Wangrover's were working very well, making a very new nice vinaiars that they planted a lot of new, vinaiards, some very interesting Sanjay flow. Varieties, but the problem was more on the side of the consortium that until two thousand and seven was not working so deeply for the to develop. So to that. To the promotion. To the promotion. Okay. Yeah. I have to I remember going there in two thousand and five when I was writing a book and, it didn't seem the region didn't really seem to have officially at least an outward looking vision. It was very preoccupied with internal politics and things like that. And obviously when you're up against the the big guns like Brunllo and Kenti Glassico or Bolgodi just further up the coast, you know, Moreno de Casano was just almost unknown. This is this is the problem how can you how do you think you can change things? I don't know. I have been the first president of the consortium in nineteen ninety two. At that time, I was really trying to to push a lot, but maybe this was not the right time to push because goes, producers were still a few few producers. Well, they're about twenty. Now it could be more easy in a way, especially because after two thousand and seven, the denomination became denominated DOC became DOCG. So things were changing a lot, especially talking about, work in the vineyards, the, the quantity, a lot. So that's a lower yields, basically. Lower yields, and then, more, focus on the kind of grapes. So what's what's a typical plan? I mean, obviously, the model is is mainly Sanjuvezi, but French grapes are allowed. Yeah. Eighty five. It's the minimum percentage, for San Duveza. Do you think it should be a hundred percent Sanjuvezi? Or always a controversial question, but I gotta ask. What are the pros and cons? It was producing, until two years ago, I was producing, a single vineyard, a more single vineyard. What do you want? That's, used to be and still is a hundred percent underway. But as a Moreno, this was not working so well. So after many vintages, because first vintage for Porto Valent has been, ninety seven. After, fourteen, fifteen vintages, we decided it, to put it away from the Make it a toscana EGT. Yeah. Yeah. So, basically, the, what is a flagship wine or should be a flagship wine of the Morolino, is the local name for Sanja Vasi? Yes. It is. Savais you're making a hundred of wine from Scanzano, which is a hundred percent more or sangivese. You're a famous producer. Mhmm. So really, what you're saying is it's silly that you have to or you feel you have to bottle that. That's just a and red, a red wife from Tuxley rather than saying, Hey, Sanjay Vaisie for Okay, Magiti. Yeah. After many, many of the interviews, we had to Were were other producers annoyed with you for doing that? Or they obviously respect the fact that it's your wine, and you can do what you want with were they did they think it was a real shame that you moved away from using the Morolino name on your bottle? The shame was especially for, for me as a producer because I was believing in potential of the area and the potential of the denomination. And so for all this, even if, Pupila became popular for Saphrady, we are a more lena winery. So Saphrady is a Bordeaux Tuscon hybrid. Yeah. It's been one of the first super taskcon to be produced. First winter was eighty five, blah, blah, blah, a lot of, nice rates, nice scores. But despite so freely, we are, winery producing Moreno. So that that's why for me. It has been like, if you you lose a struggle. You lose a fine. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's why. But fight with yourself almost as well as to fight. Especially, especially with myself. Yeah. Because I didn't want, but then family was pushing me and then the most important customers because it was also coming, a kind of limits, when we were presenting new vintages to the international journalist. Oh, okay. So it's more leno. It is confusing for people. I mean, you have to say? In a way, in a way, in a way, it's still considered as, we are very close to Montalcino area. The grape You're next door. I mean, the brownie is next door, isn't it? I mean, But until now Moreno is considered as, poorer sister. For Bernalo. Yeah. Yeah. I think probably the the moral of the story is if you if you're a wine region, don't have Bruno monte de monte as your boundary because, there's the Monte Amayata, Monteculco, Appalachian, which touches Bruno and those wines struggle internationally to get the acclaim that they sometimes deserve. Monteculco is, a Monteculco is, a Monteculco is, they say it. And, so your moderator is also a neighbor of brunello Land and and There's just a small river that is that separates the the area. Yeah. Yeah. You can get on the track. Yeah. Yeah. This is a small river. And then, there's a the biggest estate for long. Well, now it is bouncing. Yeah. You go past that on the train. You know, you get a great view. It's really where the where the boundaries lie. I do that journey often then to sort of set us to to the right side. It's nice. It is a beautiful journey. Yeah. I mean, if the train works, if if it doesn't work, it's a bit I mean, you have to call up, you have to call up, you have to call up, get a horse or to to to bring you up from the coast up to Montecino? Do you think there's a case for Bruno de Montecino, Bruno is means a hundred percent sangiovese. Morolino is the local word for Saniovese in where where you are from. Do you not think, it would make sense to say, you know what? If you want a bottle morellino, descansano, it should be a hundred percent Sanjay. Well, do you not want to get into that argument? What do you think? Make it easy for consumers. You always know if it's a morellino, so we'll send it. It'd be easy for the consumers, of course. But the the nomination was going on the opposite side because until two thousand and seven, a minimum percentage has to be eighty five centimeters and fifteen should be, local. It could be. Yeah. No. It should be until two thousand Well, you had to put in fifteen percent other games? Yeah. But the fifteen should be a local grape. So, Aleicante, it is traditional in the area. Canayolo, Chiligolo. After two thousand and seven with the DOCG, also international varieties, such as, the Cabernet, the Merlo, Liberdau, everything was included. So this for me was the A mistake. Yeah. Because in this way, the the nomination was was going far from the Further away. Yeah, con also from the consumer's ideas and thoughts, because they are thought they are thinking about, a sangiovese. Yeah. Because it says, bottleina, which is sounds amazing. Yeah. That's right. Probably won't I mean, we could talk about this for hours, but, I mean, it just, you know, it just seems silly that if you have if I have two vineyards in the in your area, one of one plot of Sanjay, one plot of Bordeaux grapes, I can bottle, I can blend them together, and they can have two names. They can be a Tus red Rosa toscana, or they can be a Morolino to Susana. So why have two? Why did you say Morolino is Chinta Pecento hundred percent Sanjuvezi, and everything else is a red wine from Tuscany. It would make it easy, isn't it? Anyway, I wasn't the sharpest tool in the box after school, but too long too long it's about. Yeah. Okay. We won't get get into politics. I mean, anyway, as I've just put the politics on the table, it's my fault for bringing up. But anyway, so when was your that was your that was your another one of your sorry. Safaledi, your flagship. When was the first vintage? Eighty five, but first vintage? On the market was, eighty seven. We never marketed, the first two interviews. Okay. At the beginning, it used to be hundred percent, covering seventy nine. And then, in the years, it changes, to become a traditional burdo blend. At the moment, it's a fifty, Cameron, seventy, Merlo and Tan Petiverdo. It's a good blend. I mean, I I'm just looking at my notes here. Silver medal and, eighteen points, which of twenty. In, the Decanta wine award, I'm head judge and blind. We didn't know what it was. Decanta. Yeah. I do that. I say re Winterage was it, sir? Was two thousand and nine. Take a rich, rich smokey seed, a broadened intense, very clear luminous flavors had against finely judge weight with good which means it's an easy one to drink and it's got ice. There you go. Just thought of that, oh, I should go and be your PR guy. You know, I gotta, I guess, you get a proper job for a change, you know, rather than doing this. So what what does the future hold? When you who are you going to hand over to? In your in your family. Is somebody gonna take on the the challenge of running lip poopy? I got five kids. Five children. You always that's how long. Children. They used to be children. The oldest Clara, she's already involved, in the winery. Clive gentile. She started, her adventure in the family business in two thousand eleven, very young, has her mother's. Then my son is studying, agricultural and winemaking between five already too, then we will see. Do you think they'll make any big changes? Will you let them be free and, you know, if they change things? Lara she's already running some markets, by hers. Yes. With, a lot of success. She made a kind of revolution on the UK market, and then she's working very, very well and very fast in the US. So I'm quite, proud of her, quite proud of her. Sure. Go ahead. She's in a way. She's, she's better than me. Okay. In a way. In a way. We're not gonna believe you. Yeah. Well, you had to put that in. I I'm a dad. I'd I'd say the same thing. Otherwise, otherwise, if you give them free rein, they just, you've always a little bit. It's so very important to to live the kids to to how can I say it? To make their own mistakes. Yes. And then to express their own ideas, to feel free to to be them selves. Great. On that note, I just wanna say thanks to my guest today on the Italian wine podcast, which is Elizabeth. Jepete. Jepete. Get things right first time, isn't it? I know it's difficult. From the Ganzano area of the Tuscan Coast in Italy, we've probably got into a bit of politics today about the blending and all the rest of it. It's so important Italian wine legislation gets a little bit more coherent. It makes life easier if you make it difficult for the producers, you make it impossible for the consumers. So, if anybody in Rome is listening, streamline some of these ridiculous aplacian, you know, if it says Morolino, it should be Morolino, which means Sanjay. That's my view. I think we agree. I can become your PR guy. Yeah. Maybe like one day a week or something. I'm not I'm not particularly good. Just PR, you know, but, you know, maybe maybe give me a job, but they'll probably fly far me from this, bring Italian politics up in a moment. But anyway, finally, we'll they'll cut all that, don't we? If they got any sense. Yeah. Although it just cut me, which is probably even easier. So finally, I want to say thank you to my guest today, Elizabeth Gibeti from Fattoria Le Pupile in, Marilini, Wisconsino. On the Tuscon coast. Be nice to talk to you, and hope to see you soon. It'd be my pleasure. Thank you. Thank you to you. Follow Italian White Podcast on Facebook and Instagram.