Sesti 'Grangiovese', Toscana, Castello di Argiano IGT 2022

The wonderful wine making at Argiano has been a personal obsession for many years, and the wines are the archetypal restaurant wines. Great stories, a beautiful place, wines made with love and energy, true expressions of the place from which they come. 

The Sesti wines are in restaurants all over London, and indeed in the US, and Northern Europe. Elisa Sesti works tirelessly and is evangelical about her product, not surprisingly. 

Giugi Sesti (Elisa's late father) grew up in Venice and much of his life has been dedicated to the study of astronomy, on which subject he is a published author. For thirty years Giugi organised an opera festival in Tuscany, whilst refurbishing the hamlet of the Castello di Argiano and its 102 hectares. There are eight hectares of vineyards here, situated to the south of the town of Montalcino.

The Grangiovese is iconic wine - amusingly not sold under that name in the US as it is too confusingly close the the Sangiovese with which it is made!

One might call this the house wine from Argiano, but still with all the elegance and magic of the RDM and the Brunellos. Elisa uses the Sangiovese grapes that don't go into their Brunello and Rosso di Montalcino for this exceptionally good value red with its ripe, gamey flavours that linger in the mouth.