Castello Vicchiomaggio

The castle traces its origins to the fifth century and was known as Vicchiomaggio by the eleventh, when it belonged to the Ricasoli family. Leonardo da Vinci is recorded as having stayed here. The Matta family bought it in 1964 and restored it, and today farm 32 hectares of vineyard within a 150-hectare estate at Greve in Chianti.

Greve sits at the northern end of Chianti Classico, and the estate's vineyards climb the slopes above the valley on galestro, the crumbly schistous marl that Sangiovese is generally held to prefer. Every parcel has been classified by soil type and exposure, and the whole property is farmed sustainably under VIVA certification, the Italian environment ministry's scheme.

John Matta, who is Anglo-Italian, oversees the winemaking, and the range runs from the everyday Ripa wines through the Chianti Classico tiers to Gran Selezione, the top category introduced in 2014 for estate-grown wines given longer ageing. There is also a Maremma bottling from the Tuscan coast.