People
CEO
Simone Pallesi
Born in Rome and after graduating with honors in Economics from Sapienza University, Simone began his career as a financial analyst at the IMI (Istituto Mobiliare Italiano, today part of Banca Intesa), handling financial transactions and capital markets. He then spent almost a decade in London, working for BNP Paribas. Upon returning to Italy, he served as Head of Corporate Development at Ferragamo Group Holding and later founded Atlas Capital SIM, a company that handles investment management and hedge funds. In 2010, Simone joined Castiglion del Bosco as CEO, bringing a strategic vision based on respect for the region and the people. He has helped steer Castiglion del Bosco towards success, upholding the founding values even through the recent change in ownership.
Winemaker
Cecilia Leoneschi
Born in Maremma, in the southwestern region of Tuscany, Cecilia Leoneschi inherited her passion for wine from her father, a lifelong winemaker. Cecilia attended university in Pisa, specializing in Viticulture and Enology, and later returned south, focusing on winemaking in Avignonesi before joining Castiglion del Bosco in 2003. Having devoted much of her career to understanding the complexities and nuances of the sangiovese grape, Cecilia continuously works to hone the vinification and ageing techniques for this particular grape variety, which is highly sensitive to climate and terrain.
According to her wine philosophy, great wines are produced by an indissoluble union between passion for viticulture and an in-depth understanding of agriculture. Cecilia also believes that organic viticulture and winemaking are key to creating wines of great quality that are authentic to and harmonious with a specific location. Cecilia’s philosophy and expertise continuously shape the Tuscan wine experience at Castiglion del Bosco, most notably with the achievement of organic certification in 2016.