All That Wine: Mike Madaio and the Story of Pecorino

All That Wine Livestream hosts Katarina and Susannah invited wine writer Mike Madaio to talk Pecorino — the bold central Italian white that nearly disappeared and came back stronger than ever.

Pecorino is a grape that I (Katarina) like a lot. I often drank Pecorino wines when I went to Le Marche years ago, before I got more into wine and wine writing. So, when Mike Madaio told me he had written an e-book about the Pecorino grape, I suggested we do a livestream together straight away. Susannah was just as stoked about the livestream idea.

Pecorino can be said to be one of Italy’s most compelling rediscovered white grapes. Mike Madaio, a Philadelphia-based wine and food writer, traces Pecorino’s near-disappearance, the champions who brought it back, and what makes this central Italian white wine worth taking seriously in his e-book. The conversation in our livestream moves from Le Marche and Abruzzo to clonal variation, ageability, and the long list of Italian grapes Mike might write about next.

Below are the show notes with more details on the key topics we covered in the All That Wine Livestream.

What Is Pecorino?

Pecorino is a white grape variety grown primarily in the Marche and Abruzzo regions of central Italy. It is not related to Pecorino cheese LOL, the name likely derives from the sheep (pecore) that grazed in the vineyards where it was found. The grape produces bold, high-acid white wines with rich fruit, minerality, herbal notes, and ageing potential. The DOCG Offida (Le Marche) is the only designated appellation for Pecorino, though Abruzzo, mainly through IGT denominations such as Terre d’Abruzzo IGT or Colline Teatine IGT, accounts for most of the more commercial production and international visibility.

The rediscovery of Pecorino in Le Marche

The story can be said to have begun in the 1970s, with a dinner where AIS sommelier Teodoro Bugari met the former student Donato Albiani, tasted some “homemade” Pecorino wine, and discovered a small vineyard lot. However, it was with Guido Cocci Grifoni of the Cocci Grifoni winery in Ascoli Piceno that experimentation with Pecorino began in the 1980s, with support from Bugari. Frustrated by the low quality of the region’s existing whites, he tracked down an old vine source in the Marche-Abruzzo border area of Arquata del Tronto, where Pecorino was still growing on pre-phylloxera rootstock in what his daughter Marilena called “a little garden.” From there, Cocci Grifoni worked to propagate and promote the grape, largely against local resistance.

Why Pecorino almost disappeared

Pecorino fell out of favour for practical reasons: it was low-yielding, had delayed fruit development, and harvested unusually early, sometimes in August. In an era when co-ops paid by volume and Chardonnay and other international varieties promised higher yields, there was little economic incentive to hold on to it.

The parallel revival in Abruzzo

While Cocci Grifoni was working in Le Marche, interest was simultaneously developing across the regional border. Cesare Tiberio, Central Italy Area Manager at the VCR (Vivai Cooperativi Rauscedo) nursery in Abruzzo, began pushing for the grape around the same time. The regions share terrain, families, and winemaking culture, a fact that makes the ongoing debate over who “rediscovered” Pecorino especially charged. In the 1980s, Cataldi Madonna Winery also began producing and promoting Pecorino wines, apparently unaware that Cocci Grifoni had already been doing so for some time. This is still a bit of a local diatribe regarding who was first. There is still some frustration that Abruzzo has become more internationally associated with the grape.

How fast did Pecorino grow?

According to VCR data cited in Mike’s book, Pecorino plantings went from roughly 87 hectares in 2000 to 1,500 hectares by 2010, nearly a 20-fold increase in a single decade.

Clones and viticulture

Cristiana Tiberio (Abruzzo) works exclusively with a massal selection of Pecorino sourced from old vines discovered in their Trebbiano Abruzzese vineyard around 2000, believed to be an older clone with more pronounced herbal and green notes. Most commercial producers, however, work with a more productive VCR nursery clone selected for ease of cultivation. Mike notes that clone discussion gets technical quickly, and that his e-book stays focused on story over specs.

What does Pecorino taste like?

Mike describes it as a bold, high-acid white with rich, almost tropical fruit and strong minerality, a serious white wine that holds its structure. The hosts compare it to Greco (for the acidity and minerality) and note similarities to Chenin Blanc in its waxy texture. The expression “a red wine for white wine drinkers” comes up, though Mike admits he’s not entirely sure what that means.

Can Pecorino age?

Yes, and most winemakers will tell you it can, but then admit they sell out before they get the chance to prove it. All of us - I, Susannah, and Mike - have had Pecorino aged about five to ten years with good results. The combination of high acidity and relatively high alcohol supports the case for ageing, but examples with a long ageing remain rare.

What grapes might come next?

Susannah, Mike, and I brainstorm candidates for future chapters in the Almost Lost Italian Grapes series: Falanghina, Caprettone (from Vesuvio), Grillo, Casavecchia, Punitello (Tuscany), Foglia Tonda, Trebbiano Spoletino — a grape both I (Katarina) and Mike have already written about and which featured prominently at Montefalco the previous June.

Where to find the book

The ebook is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, and Google Books at a low price. An Italian translation is now also available, translated by my friend Letizia Galletti. Read more at Mike’s website, Life At Table.

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Highlights

• [00:02] Mike introduces himself: 20 years of food and wine writing, two full-length books, and a new series of shorter e-books called Almost Lost Italian Grapes — Pecorino is the first chapter.

• [04:15] The origin story: Guido Cocci Grifoni begins experimenting with Pecorino in the 1980s in Ascoli Piceno, after concluding that local Trebbiano Toscano wasn’t cutting it.

• [07:40] The numbers: Pecorino plantings jump from 87 hectares in 2000 to 1,500 hectares by 2010, a statistic that captures how quickly a near-lost grape can become a commercial force.

• [13:20] Why it disappeared: low yields, a hermaphroditic vine structure that delayed fruiting, early harvest timing, and the broader shift toward high-volume international varieties during the co-op era.

• [18:50] Finding the source: Cocci Grifoni tracks down Pecorino growing on pre-phylloxera rootstock in a hilltop garden near Arquata del Tronto, on the Marche-Abruzzo border. His daughter Marilena called it “a little garden.”

• [25:10] Clonal variation: CristianaTiberio in Abruzzo works with a massal selection from old vines discovered in a Trebbiano Abruzzese vineyard, believed to be a more ancient clone with stronger herbal characteristics than the widely distributed VCR nursery selection.

• [31:00] Ageing Pecorino: Mike has had good results at 8–10 years. The grape’s high acidity and relatively high alcohol support the case, but most producers sell out fast, making long-aged examples hard to track down.

• [38:20] What’s next: a wide-ranging conversation about candidates for future Almost Lost Italian Grapes chapters — Timorasso, Falanghina, Caprettone, Casavecchia, Pugnitello, and more.