Creating a lasting legacy that spans multiple generations and leaves an impact both far and wide takes more than just passion and hard work. It requires perseverance, determination, and an unrelenting commitment to the long-range vision of the Founder, carried on from one generation to the next, without ever dropping the baton.
In celebration of two families, six centuries, and one enduring legacy combining a love of Tuscan-inspired food and wine, Pèppoli at Pebble Beach Resorts has been bringing a genuine taste of Tuscany to the California coast for over 25 years.
Each June, the restaurant’s Under the Tuscan Moon event at The Inn at Spanish Bay draws guests into an indoor and outdoor strolling reception modeled after the open-air markets and vineyard estates of Tuscany, featuring charming food stations adorned with fresh lemons and sunflower bouquets, Antinori wines, and an atmosphere that transports you to another time and place.
Last year’s edition marked Pèppoli’s 25th anniversary, with Marchese Piero Antinori as the honored guest. This year, the spotlight passed to his grandson, Niccolò Antinori (the 27th generation winemaker in the family), and the evening’s theme came into focus around something larger than a single anniversary: the story of two multigenerational family businesses, one rooted in Tuscany since 1385 and one built in Carmel-by-the-Sea over the last five decades, whose real-life friendship made Pèppoli possible.
Rich Pèpe, founder of Pèpe International, Inc., has known the Antinori family for years — a relationship close enough that asking to build a restaurant around their name and wines made sense. As a result of growing up locally and dining out often, my family has known Rich and his family for decades. On the Monterey Peninsula, the Pèpe name isn’t just a brand; it’s essentially a legacy.
Before Pèppoli, there was the Carmel Bakery — the oldest bakery in Carmel-by-the-Sea (dating back to the 1800s), located on Ocean Avenue, and part of the Pèpe family’s portfolio. With a line out the door these days, I jokingly told Rich that they’re “definitely making dough”, thanks to all the tourists who can’t wait to get a taste of the Pepe family’s freshly baked pastries.
Through Pèpe International, Inc., Rich, his wife Sandra, and his sons (Christian and Gian) have built a family-owned restaurant group that defines Italian-American dining on the Monterey Peninsula. Little Napoli, Vesuvio, the Carmel Bakery, and Pèppoli each operate on the same conviction: that food is an expression of care, and that hospitality is a relationship, not a transaction. His sons handle much of the day-to-day operations, making Pèpe International a true multigenerational family enterprise.
Rich grew up watching his grandfathers, his father, and his uncles run their own businesses. That background shaped how he thinks about what he has built — and how he thinks about the Antinoris.
He explained, “Te Duce Proficio” is the Latin motto of the Antinori family, translating to ‘Following your guide, I flourish.’ It reflects the family’s enduring philosophy: honoring the traditions of the past, embracing innovation in the present, and continually striving for excellence in the future.
Niccolò Antinori, now 26 years old, is the grandson of Marchese Piero Antinori and a proud heir to one of the world’s oldest family-owned wine dynasties. Poised to build upon the foundation laid by his ancestors, Niccolò carries forward a remarkable legacy of stewardship, vision, and passion for Tuscan winemaking that has endured since 1385.
In my own family, both of my grandfathers were independent business owners, as were my father and many of my uncles. Their example inspired me to forge my own path nearly fifty years ago in the bakery and restaurant business. Today, my wife Sandra and I are privileged to watch our two sons carry that tradition forward, having joined our family enterprises and now guiding many of the day-to-day operations.
While our story spans only a few generations rather than the Antinoris’, we share a common belief: that the greatest family legacies are built through hard work, sacrifice, perseverance, and a commitment to leaving something meaningful for future generations.
The Antinori story is more than a history of exceptional wine; it is a reminder that enduring success is rarely measured in years, but in generations. Whether in the vineyards of Tuscany or in a neighborhood bakery and restaurant, family businesses are sustained by shared values, respect for those who came before, and faith in those entrusted to carry the legacy onward.”
For readers less familiar with the Antinori name: the family has been making wine continuously since 1385, when Giovanni di Piero Antinori joined the Florentine Winemakers’ Guild. The estate has never left family hands, which is quite remarkable, especially considering that kind of continuity is a rarity in the wine world.
Marchese Piero Antinori took the helm in 1966 and changed the trajectory of Italian wine. Working with winemaker Giacomo Tachis, he created Tignanello — a blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc that became the defining Super Tuscan and rewrote the rules of what Italian wine could be. His three daughters, Albiera, Allegra, and Alessia, now run the company and have continued to expand its global footprint without compromising the family’s standards or relinquishing ownership.
That expansion includes a significant California presence. The family has operated in Napa Valley since 1985 and in 2023 completed the acquisition of Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars — the Napa estate whose 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon beat the top Bordeaux wines in the famous 1976 “Judgment of Paris” blind tasting. Antinori is the only Italian wine producer to own a winery in Napa Valley. The family that created the Super Tuscan now also stewards one of the most important addresses in American wine.
While their family is highly regarded within the global wine industry, everyone who has spent time with members of this family says the same thing: they are warm, genuinely curious, and hardworking. The Tuscan hospitality their wines evoke reflects the very essence of what the family is all about – wholesome values and a welcoming attitude.
Niccolò Antinori is 26 years old and Piero’s grandson. Readers who followed last year’s coverage of Pèppoli’s 25th anniversary, which included a Q&A with Piero, will have a sense of the standard Niccolò is stepping into. He’s focused on engaging with wine, hospitality, and the family’s global audience on his own terms, expressing the kind of innate understanding and enthusiasm that tends to inspire people to want to savor more.
Christina-Lauren Pollack: Beyond the wines themselves, the Antinori name has become associated with a certain way of living rooted in beauty, gathering, and tradition. What elements of Italian lifestyle or hospitality do you think resonate most strongly with people today?
Niccolò Antinori: “The Italian culture and approach to hospitality is admirable in the way ‘food is love,’ prioritizing the freshest ingredients and always with a quality over quantity approach. This philosophy, combined with the tradition of an aperitivo — the pre-dinner routine centered around communion and conversation — is a shining example of why Italian cuisine is so much more than the tastes. As the Italians say, ‘a tavola non si invecchia’ — you don’t age at the table — meaning hours spent eating and conversing are never wasted and always good for the soul. When it comes to hospitality, the Italian experience is savored, never rushed.”
CLP: Many younger consumers are becoming interested in wine through lifestyle, travel, and culinary experiences rather than formal wine education. How do you see the next generation discovering and connecting with wine differently from previous generations?
NA: “The next generation of food and wine enthusiasts thrives on meaningful consumption. They want to feel inspired and a sense of personal connection to the story of the Chateau or winery they are experiencing. They are inquisitive and eager to travel, learning about new varieties of wine by truly experiencing the connection it has with cultures from which they are produced.”
CLP: Tuscany has long represented a romantic ideal for travelers around the world. From your perspective, what do you think people are truly searching for when they experience Tuscan wine culture for the first time?
NA: “Vast rolling hills of old vines and towering Tuscan Cypress trees with the sunset draped behind are powerful visuals synonymous with Tuscany. There is a sense of place there which organically invites palates to come alive. Whether you are a novice in wine or a veteran collector, Tuscany’s rich history is as impressive as the wine itself. From Sangiovese-based (Chianti and Brunello) to bold Super Tuscan (Cabernet and Merlot) wines, Tuscany makes a compelling case as the epicenter of the wine world. Pairing them with the authentic cuisine has a way of making one want to return almost as soon as they depart. And in the meantime, Pèppoli and ‘Under the Tuscan Moon’ are here to evoke those same senses.”
At the event, the strolling format is one of the things that sets this event apart from a conventional wine dinner. Rather than assigned seats and a fixed progression, guests move freely between stations spread across the Pèppoli lawn and the main dining room at The Inn at Spanish Bay. Each station is named for a different area of a Tuscan village — Il Mercato, La Formaggeria, Il Pastificio, La Macelleria, La Friggitoria, La Fattoria, Dolci — and each has its own menu and wine pairings.
Chef de Cuisine Angela Tamura built the menu around Tuscan regional cooking, with each dish matched to wines from Antinori’s Italian and California estates. A few highlights from the evening:
The Pizza al Taglio at Il Mercato — Roman-style pizza with market toppings, paired with Pian delle Vigne and Rosso di Montalcino — was a good entry point into the evening: straightforward, well-executed, and a reminder that simple food done correctly does not need embellishment. The Gnudi from Il Pastificio, roasted ricotta dumplings with heirloom tomatoes, were a standout — light enough that you could eat several before realizing you had. At La Friggitoria, the Arancini — crispy risotto bites with pecorino and goat cheese, served alongside the Pèppoli Chianti Classico — were exactly what fried food at a wine event should be: satisfying without being heavy. And to close, the Torta della Nonna — a classic Italian custard tart — was a well-chosen finish. Traditional, not fussy, paired with Antinori Vin Santo.
The wine program reinforced what makes this particular event worth attending annually. Niccolò presented selections from both Antinori’s Tuscan estates and their California holdings, including Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars — giving guests a through-line from Chianti Classico to Napa in a single evening.
The Antinori family has been making wine for hundreds of years without ever selling the business or losing the thread of what makes it distinctive. Rich Pèpe has spent over 50 years building restaurants on the Monterey Peninsula that his wife and sons help run, bringing together a family and a community.
While these companies are operating in two different worlds, thousands of miles apart, their family-run empires are built on the same idea: that what you leave behind matters more than what you accumulate, and that the people who come after you should inherit something worth carrying forward. That, fundamentally, is what Pèppoli is all about.
[Disclosure: Complimentary media access c/o Pebble Beach Resorts. All opinions are my own. Image credits: Christina-Lauren Pollack for Inspirations & Celebrations.]