Delfino Tallia opened his mill at Strona, in the green valley of the Strona river above Biella, in 1903, making cloth for the better tailoring workshops of the day. More than 120 years later all of the production is still in Strona. They work Australian merino, Mongolian cashmere, South African mohair, silk, linen and even vicuña and alpaca, across counts from tropical wool up through Super 130s, 150s, 180s and 200s. For us the headline is the Solaro, a cloth designed for the sun, and the mohair blends, which behave in humidity in a way plain wool does not.
Founded 1903, and still weaving in the same valley
Fratelli Tallia di Delfino was established in 1903 at Strona in the Biella district by Delfino Tallia, making drapery and cloth for refined tailoring workshops. Around 1933 the business reconsidered its position and opened up to larger-scale production, which is what allowed it to survive a century that killed a great many Italian mills.
The valley is the point. The Strona river runs through a territory whose history is built on textiles, and the mill keeps 100 per cent of its production there, using methods handed down through generations of local weavers and finishers. It has picked up its share of recognition along the way, including the number one fabric award from Saks Fifth Avenue in both 2013 and 2016.
Their signature range is a 17 micron double-twisted cloth. Double twisting, where the yarn is twisted before weaving, is the same principle that makes a Fresco behave so well: yarn under tension springs back, so the cloth resists creasing and keeps a dry, clean surface. In a fibre that fine, that combination is unusual.
The Solaro, and why we bring it out first
The Solaro was developed during the imperial century to shield British soldiers from the sun, woven with a coloured underweft, usually red or orange, beneath a khaki or olive face. Hold a piece up and it shifts colour as the light moves across it. Whether the red layer ever blocked much of anything is a question historians can argue about. What is not arguable is how the cloth behaves.
Solaro is dry in the hand, holds its shape, does not cling, and looks alive in strong daylight in a way flat cloths do not. It was built for people working outdoors in hot countries, and Chennai is a hot country. A Solaro suit or a Solaro jacket is one of the few pieces of tailoring that actively looks better in Indian sunlight than it does under a European sky.
It is not an office-uniform cloth. It has character and it announces itself a little, so it belongs on a jacket for a day event, a destination wedding, a summer function, or a suit for someone who has already got the navy and the charcoal covered. If you want to be invisible, buy something else. If you want one garment that people ask you about, this is it.
Mohair, merino and the rest of the book
Tallia di Delfino source globally: Australian merino, Mongolian cashmere, South African mohair, Chinese silk, linen, and at the top end alpaca and vicuña from South America. The one worth understanding for this climate is mohair.
Mohair comes from the angora goat. The fibre is smooth, resilient and has a natural lustre, and a wool and mohair blend is one of the great warm-weather suitings: it resists creasing hard, it does not go limp in humidity, and it keeps a slight sheen that reads well under evening light. A mohair blend suit is a serious answer for a Chennai wedding, and considerably more comfortable than the heavy silk-blend alternatives.
Beyond that the range covers tropical wool and the standard Super counts through 130s, 150s, 180s and 200s. The same rule applies as with any mill: the high counts are lovely and delicate, and we will tell you where the line is for the way you actually live.
Why this mill matters more here than it does in London
A lot of famous Italian cloth was designed for a European year. Tallia di Delfino make several things that were designed for heat, which is why they get more shelf attention from us than their profile in the wider market would suggest.
The order we usually suggest is this. If you need one distinctive warm-weather garment, look at the Solaro. If you need a wedding suit for a Chennai afternoon, look at the mohair blends. If you want the mill in something quieter, the tropical wools and the double-twisted signature cloth will do everything a fine worsted does and crease less.
Tallia di Delfino cloth is available to order through us. Come in and hold a Solaro under the shop light, because photographs do not show you what that underweft does.