Long before ‘quiet luxury’ was a buzzword, and long after it will be, Brunello Cucinelli defined this philosophy, which extends beyond apparel and accessories to a lifestyle. The brand’s “Casa Cucinelli” concept, which rolled out starting in 2021, provides a more profound physical manifestation of that lifestyle beyond its multiple global retail locations.

Cucinelli’s Castello di Solomeo 2018 vintage wine, which debuted in 2023, rounds out its luxurious way of life in a manner most fashion labels could only dream about. For the 2019 vintage, Casa Cucinelli hosted New York media for an exclusive, private dinner sans social media and official photographs to taste both wines. The 2019 version bowed in Italy last month during a La Paulée-inspired celebration.

Held at 689 Fifth Avenue, the second-floor private shopping space exudes the IYKYK as shopping appointments usually occur on an invite-only, one-on-one basis for VICs (very important clients). Fully decked out to resemble a spacious Manhattan loft-style apartment, guests mingled in the space’s kitchen, sipping $200-a-bottle Krug champagne.

Hosted by Massimo Carrone, Brunello Cucinelli, president and CEO of North America, and Patrick O’ Connor, CEO of Fine+Rare Group, an international marketplace for prestigious wine cellars, distinguished cellars, and renowned producers, the intimate 26-guest dinner—which featured traditional antipasti, Cacio and Pepe pasta, Beef Tagliata, Tiramisu and Castello di Solomeo olive oil— kicked off with a recap of the brand’s inaugural wine celebration, Cucinelli’s ‘Davos of wine,’ that took its inspiration from the traditional French post-harvest Burgundy celebration.

That event, which took place over two days and featured seven winemakers, including Krug and Castello di Solomeo, hosted about 200 attendees who experienced wine tastings, Italian craftsmanship, and Renaissance-inspired entertainment in the quaint hamlet of Solomeo, which Cucinelli began reviving in 1982 when he bought its 14th-century castle.

Here, collectors of wine and the brands VICs convened (and often overlapped or converted to either wine collectors or luxury cashmere collectors) to get a first taste of the 2019 vintage Castello di Solomeo while comparing it to the debut 2018 version. The wine is a blend of four grapes: Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and, for local flare, Sangiovese. (One wine critic quipped that it was similar to a ‘Tuscan Super Red’, but more accurately, due to region, it would be an ‘Umbrian Super Red’.)

As a company spokesperson walked the guests through the wine, they credited 2018 with being “a strong wine, not shy, it’s dangerous. It has beautiful tannins and freshness and a softer, smoother, silk, velvety character with notes of ripe dark cherry, very generous and spicy hints, black pepper, nutmeg, balsamic hints, and Bay leaf with 14.5 percent alcohol.”

Having aged 16 months in new French oak barrels plus four years in a bottle, the wine already had a more mature taste than the new vintage which they described as “small forest fruit, blueberry, blackberry, and spicy hints with fresh balsamic notes. It’s very classy and elegant. It’s a wine at the beginning of its evolutionary path with strong legs to last decades.”

The representative also drew a line between wine making and fashion with both working on multiple seasons at once; creating one while debuting another.

Much like the fashion brand, it’s highly exclusive. With vines planted in 2011 in concentric undulating rows, the 12 acres of vines would produce a maximum of 20,000 bottles yearly, but the brand plans to not exceed half of that number, following a ‘less is more’ philosophy. According to the spokesperson, the 2018 vintage produced just 7,000 bottles. Thus, this complimentary brand extension is not a business extension but a deeply personal project for the Cucinelli family, whose roots in the region trace back to peasant farmers with a close connection to the land.

While you won’t find it in your local wine store, O’Connor and his team are the conduits to a select number of bottles becoming a part of esteemed wine collectors’ private cellars.

Presumably, VICs may get a taste on occasion at the various Casa Cucinelli locations globally.
Currently, there are ten global locations of the private shopping concept, with two more Casa Cucinelli’s set to debut in 2025, one in Los Angeles and another in Rome, further expanding the theater in which Cucinelli expresses its understated yet uber luxe vision.