If you go to your wine store’s
Italian wine section chances are you’ll see this woman as she appears on all of
the labels of one of Sicily’s most famous wineries. In fact, the winery is named after her. Who is this person? She was the Queen of Naples & Sardinia
who in 1805 fled Naples from Napoleon’s invading troops and took refuge in
Sicily. Donnafugata literally means the “woman
in flight.” This event inspired the Donnafugata logo, the effigy of a woman’s
head with windblown hair.
The fugitive Queen well knew
about political unrest and being captured by the enemy. Her younger sister, Marie Antoinette, had
been beheaded. After the beheading, the
Queen led Naples into war with France, joining forces with Great Britain and
Austria. If captured by Napoleon’s army,
she would have been in grave danger of the guiollotine.
The actual estate where the
Queen sought asylum in Sicily is now the site of the Donnafugata winery and
vineyards. In the 1980’s this >700 acre property began
producing wines. Today, it is an
internationally prestigious company producing 2.5 million bottles annually. Its high quality wines have received enumerable
awards around the globe, as well as top scores from the Wine Spectator and a host of critics such as Robert Parker.
If you’re coming on the 2014
tour to Sicily, you’ll have the opportunity to visit the Donnafugata estate for
a private dinner. If not, the winery has
an excellent penetration in the US, so buy a bottle and have a toast to the “woman
in flight.”
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