Leone di Castris Wines
The wine was produced for General Charles Poletti of the allied occupying forces, who wanted an English name for the bottles he was to be supplied with. It was only logical, therefore, that the de Castris house was to play such a leading role in the wines of the region: although of Spanish origin (the family could boast of its descent from two viceroys of the King of Spain during the 17th century), the de Castris counts were quick to recognize the potential of the Salento area of Puglia and acquired 12,500 acres of land, which, along with the vineyards, they had planted, with olive groves and grain fields as well.
Leadership became a tradition and the new wines of the house – white, red, and rosé – now produced with the cunning counsels of Riccardo Cotarella, president of the world’s association of oenologists, are exemplary in their interpretation of the territory.