Chiara Condello

Chiara grew up in Fiumana di Predappio, near her family winery Condé, which was founded by her father Francesco Condello in 2001. Chiara studied Economics at Bocconi University in Milan and, at the age of 24, took over the family estate, fully committed not only to preserving her family’s winery but also to elevating the reputation of the Sangiovese grape to new heights.

Chiara and her family strongly believe in the value of Predappio, a subzone in Romagna known as one of the very best areas for the production of Sangiovese. It is an area characterized by rich and complex soil, with favorable conditions for the grape, and a cooler climate than neighboring Tuscany.

A few years ago, Chiara started an exciting new project under her own label. The range consists of two 100% Sangiovese wines: a ‘normale’ called Romagna Sangiovese Predappio and her increasingly famous Riserva Le Lucciole.

Later, another wine debuted with the 2018 vintage, named Lo Stralisco Riserva, which was added to her portfolio. This is a tiny cuvée of just 500 bottles, made from 100% Sangiovese. No wines were produced in 2019, and the next release is expected to be the 2020 vintage.

Chiara’s wines are made from some of the best plots of the Condé vineyards, located near a forest where the vines are deeply rooted in calcareous-clay soil rich in sedimentary sandstones known as “spugnone” and fossilized marine deposits. Farming is organic, with a meticulous focus on biodiversity and grape quality. In the cellar, Chiara, a disciple of the late, great Giulio Gambelli, follows a long maceration, minimal intervention approach with spontaneous fermentation in open-top wooden vats using indigenous yeasts, and ageing in large neutral vessels. The resulting wines are pure, expressive, richly textured, and deeply layered, with tannins of rare elegance.

Chiara’s debut vintage was in 2015, and since then, her reputation has soared.