Text: love poetry (epigrams)
Author: Philodemus of Gadara
Date: mid 1st c. BCE
Language: Greek
Notes: bright, playful, bold, herbaceous, charming, and surprisingly versatile
Elissa’s pick: a Verduno Pelaverga like this one
This, friends, is a fun one! Philodemus and Philosophy are like Piemonte and Barolo: a comfortable, familiar pairing to those in the know. But like Langhe with its fan-favorite Nebbiolos, our beloved Gadaran has more to offer than heavy-hitting theory. So when the philosophy weighs on your head and the tannins on your tongue, sip something a little friendlier: a crisp, bright epigram of a wine with a flirtatious, cherry-red hue.
Like Philodemus, Pelaverga is one of our more esoteric picks. But both deserve a broader audience than they have enjoyed. The philosopher-poet’s reputation in the scholarly community aligns more with one of the bigger, punchier northern reds: he is challenging and fragmentary, though worth the slog for genuine devotees of Graeco-Roman philosophy and literary theory.
His oft-forgotten love epigrams, however, are eminently legible and dedicated to a roster of women as mobile as a Verdi heroine. Whether it’s one of his four exes named Demo, the sexagenarian Charito, or the iconic Xanthippe, there is a lady for every taste among these poems.
The Verduno Pelavergas, too, hold appeal for many palates. With refreshing acidity and just enough body and tannin to keep things interesting, a typical example carries notes from fresh strawberry and florals to white pepper. More flirtatious than sexy, this wine combines the easy-drinking approachability of a Provençal rosé with the complexity and clout of a mid- to upper-tier Beaujolais.
ὁσσάκι Κυδίλλης ὑποκόλπιος, εἴτε κατά᾽ ἦμαρ, / εἴτ᾽ ἀποτολμήσας ἤλυθον ἑσπέριος…
Philodemus, Anth. Gr. 5.25
“However often I find myself in Cedilla’s embrace, whether in the daytime or, more presumptuously, in the evening…”
In sum, this wine and these poems are equally at home at summertime picnics and elegant dinner parties. If you’ve cracked open your Palatine Anthology only to find that your local wine store is not yet stocking Pelaverga, reach for a bottle of the similarly mesmerizing and cheerfully acidic Freisa: you really can’t go wrong. And for those watching the markets (philological and enological), we at Vintellect advise you to keep an eye out for both Philodemus’ epigram’s and Verduno’s cheeky alternative to Nebbiolo — both seem to be on the rise in circles where these things matter. In the meantime, grab a bottle, a book, and a beau and chase that ataraxia like it’s going out of style!
vintellect 