“Italians see fashion as a search for beauty,” says Matteo Persivale, one of Milan’s best-dressed men and a senior writer at Corriere della Serra, the country’s leading daily newspaper.

Perhaps that’s why those in less tropical climes are still so drawn to the Italianate style — it breaks free of the workaday pragmatism of traditional tailoring, and lives with a passion that most rarely allow their more buttoned-up wardrobes to experience.

Italian style has a classic quality about it, but right now it’s also pushing envelopes and generating hype for fun. Luxury brands like Gucci, Moncler and Stone Island – all with strikingly different heritage – are enjoying crossover success, appealing to one-percenters and streetwear-loving millennials alike.

Not that you have to be a high roller to sprinkle some sprezzatura over your wardrobe. Here are 10 of the finest Italian menswear brands, and the particulars of their own search for beauty.

Incotex

Best For: Versatile Trousers

Venetian label Incotex is part of the much-loved Slowear collective — a group of craftsmen and design houses with a shared belief in producing higher quality clothes and a distinct aversion to disposable garments and fast fashion. The brand’s simple but expertly built chinos are a staple of most Italian men’s wardrobes, where their understated colourways and traditional detailing means they’re equally at home below a blazer or paired with a T-shirt and sneakers.

Aspesi

Best For: Expertly Engineered Outerwear

Since 1969, Aspesi has specialised in the kind of lifelong clothing companions that will weather any storm and grow better with age. The brand’s founder, Alberto Aspesi, seldom gives interviews and designs his garments without any outer logos. Instead, he lets the garments speak for themselves, mainly through their precise craftsmanship and rich materials. Its field jackets, for example, are some of the most coveted in the world thanks to their military-issue detailing, utilitarian feel, and year-round versatility.