ITALY – BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO
Castello Romitorio translates to “Chateaux Hermitage”. In fact the winery is named after the fortress located a few hundred yards from the cellar. The fortress was a hermitage for monks before being fortified, during the Middle Ages, for battle. The winery was founded by Sandro Chia Artist of the Transavanguardia movement. His artwork is on all the castello romitorio labels. Since 2005 the winery is operated by Sandro’s son Filippo Chia.
Knowing pretty well how growing Sangiovese in cool climate/high altitudes in Montalcino (up to 450m), the team has been working together for over thirty years carefully cultivating 15 hectares of Sangiovese. The objective is quality first and lot of attention is dedicated to the vineyard and its micro zones. The estate continuously look for harmony in vineyard through balanced agricultural techniques (organic farming). Green harvest and perfect harvest time is the key to producing long-lasting fantastic Sangiovese wines like Brunello and Rosso di Montalcino.
In 1999 the estate purchased a winery (Tenuta Ghiaccio Forte) on the coast of Tuscany in the Maremma area precisely in the town of Scansano. Consisting in old existing vineyards of Sangiovese as well as plant a variety of new clones of Sangiovese, Petit Verdot, Syrah, Ciliegiolo. The Sangiovese is used to produce one of Scansano’s most unique Morellino wines. The international varietals are destined for the unique RomiToro IGT Toscana and IGT Ripaforte.
The style is elegant and traditional. The grapes are harvested by hand and carefully selected berry by berry in order to ensure that only the grapes are transformed into wine. In the cellar the work is very gentle and the grapes are left to express themselves. The result are wines that have bright energy with balance. Depending on the wines they can age from 5 to 20 years.
The comments of well-known wine critics are pretty laudatory about the Castello Romitorio wines :
“Castello Romitorio’s wines are some of Montalcino’s sleekest and most perfumed.”
Ian d’Agata
” While some estates struggled to find a sense of place in 2015, Romitorio excelled. Much of this was the result of their naturally cooler terroir, located in the northwest of Montalcino, in soils that span galestro, clay and albarese. The wines see a combination of both large barrels and French oak for 24-30 months, but the focus is on the fruit, never the wood, and it results in a wonderfully balanced expression.
Eric Guido (Vinous)
“…It occurred to me that those are the exact qualities I love about the wines made at Castello Romitorio that stands so tall and proud on one of Montalcino’s most exposed ridges. The art, the creepy window-deprived castle and the engaging international-interdisciplinary personalities of proprietors Sandro and his son Filippo makes this one of my favorite estates in Montalcino.
Monica Larner (Wine Advocate)
the tasting notes of the whole range are among the best of Brunello di Montalcino.
All other informations about Castello Romitorio to be found on the estate’s website : https://www.castelloromitorio.com
