"Filippo Chia and his team at Castello Romitorio have been on a roll for over a decade now, seemingly able to deliver the most classic and profound expressions of Brunello from nearly every vintage"
Eric Guido, Vinous

Owned by the (living) Italian equivalent of Lucien Freud, this is the Montalcino estate of renowned artist Sandro Chia, a property on a massive ascendancy in terms of the wines it is producing, yet they remain at a thoroughly drinkable price. Sandro has amassed immense wealth through his art and sculpture (each wine has its own art label), and there is little need for additional profit from his vinous project; instead, he just wants to see his wines being opened and consumed. Chia's art adorns both the labels of the bottles and the walls and floor of the cellar.
 
The wines produced at this estate are very much at the fine and elegant end of the Brunello spectrum – this is a Burgundy lover’s Sangiovese, perfumed and floral but equally intense, complex and sophisticated, all brimming with unmistakeable Montalcino terroir. The wines are hand-picked and selected both before and after destemming, and yields are kept intentionally low to maximise the quality potential.

On offer here are the estate’s flagship Brunello di Montalcino - made from the finest parcels of estate grown fruit, this is wonderfully concentrated and brimming with minerality and the classic nutty aromas so typical in Montalcino Sangiovese - and the single vineyard Filo di Seta, which is characterised by abundant schist deposits in the soil, producing a wine brimming with bright red berries, flowers and crushed stones with the finest tannins one could hope for. It is easy to get lost in the bouquet of this wine, so beautifully elegant and gently evolving, and every sip is irresistibly more-ish.