In 1974 business executive Raffaele Rossetti traded his job in Rome for a life in the Tuscan countryside. He bought and restored Capannelle, a 16th-century Tuscan farmhouse where he created a pioneering boutique winery, and blended some of Chianti’s most coveted wines. He treated soil and wines organically and with great respect for the nature. From the very first vintage in 1975, Capannelle’s wines made a splash.

As one of the first Tuscan winemakers to use stainless steel tanks, Rossetti’s innovative techniques drew the attention of many in the industry and his handcrafted wines, produced in very small quantities, became world famous and highly demanded. Those bottles were quickly snapped up by famed gourmands like Frank Sinatra, Donald Trump, and Alain Delon, who ensured Capannelle wines a place in Chianti lore. In 1997, American James Sherwood, owner of sea containers group and Oriental Express Trains and Hotels, bought the Gaiole-based winery, although he kept the charismatic Rossetti on as a consultant. Today, Capannelle’s winemaker Simone Monciatti who worked with founder Raffaele Rosetti produces a limited number of only 50,000 bottles of four iconic Capannelle wines per year the most being the 50&50, which he produces with Avignonesi, another iconic winery. From every harvest, 3,000 bottles are kept aside for exclusive clients who collect different vintages of the series. This method is growing and improving with the opening of “The Caveau" where 8,000 bottles of Capannelle wines are stored in personalized spaces. Many 5-star and boutique hotels, celebrities and superstars from all over the world store their Capannelle vintage series in this exclusive wine cellar.