A large estate, with 180 hectares of immaculately maintained vineyards in Castelnuovo Berardenga, which lies adjacent to its sister property Villa la Pagliaia. The wines at both are made by Leonardo Bellacini, a master of the 'non interventionist' approach, giving classic expressions of high quality Sangiovese, restrained and complex and with great balance and depth. The secret lies in high quality grapes from exceptional vineyards, driven by an intensive research programme, in particular by selection of the best naturally occuring clones. The resulting wines are understated but satisfying, unencumbered by new oak, Cabernet or flashy winemaking.

Il Grigio is made from a selection of the best Sangiovese grapes from the Chianti Classico vineyards on the Agricola San Felice Estates in Castelnuovo Berardenga, Siena. The vineyards are at altitudes of 350/400 m. above sea level and the soil is mostly limestone and loam. The vines are trained using the Guyot and Spurred Cordon methods.

The must was fermented on the skins for 18-20 days at 28-30 degrees Centigrade. This was followed by malolactic fermentation in stainless steel vats. 80% of the wine was matured in Slavonian oak botte (60/90 Hl) for 18 months, while the remaining 20% was aged in French oak barriques. The wine then spent 6 months in bottle.

Excellent with grilled lamb, or roast duck or goose.

Shows a dark, mid-weight texture with extra heft that comes in the form of baked plum, candied cherry and spice. This is another good value wine from one of the most beautiful properties (and luxury hotels) in Italy. 92pts, Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate