From Wine to Limocello

Billecart Salmon Champagne:

It all started in 1818, when Nicolas François Billecart and Elisabeth Salmon got married, marking the creation of their champagne house. This has been a family story from the start with Louis Salmon, Elisabeth's brother and a passionate winemaker, involved in the creation of the wines. Thus, for more than 7 generations, each member of the family has tried to continue the family tradition, remaining true to the same motto: "Give priority to quality, strive for excellence". The Champagne of the Maison is based, above all, on the unique know-how of its men who rigorously pamper a 100-hectare estate and source grapes from a total area of ​​300 hectares in 40 Champagne vintages. Most of the grapes used for the vinification come from a 20 km radius around Epernay, where the grands cru of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier coexist in the lands of the Montagne de Reims, the Côte des Blanches and the Marne Valley.

Fresh spring Limoncello:

The authorship of limoncello is disputed between Sorrento, Amalfi and Capri. The history of the product unfolds through a series of anecdotes and legends. Someone argues that already at the time of the Saracen invasion, Limoncello was used by fishermen and farmers in the morning to fight the cold. Others, however, believe that the recipe was born in a monastic convent to delight the friars between one prayer and another. However, it is certain that at the beginning of the 1900s the great Sorrento families never let their illustrious guests miss a taste of limoncello made according to the traditional recipe. 

Limoncello is Curti:

A Limoncello produced in Sant'Anastasia in the province of Naples in an artisanal way, using the lemons that grow in the lemon grove of the Hotel Excelsior in Sorrento. The essential oils of the lemon floating on the product are highlighted in the neck of the bottle, demonstrating the exceptional quality of this limoncello made by E' Curti, a historic company known above all for the production of Nucillo exported all over the world. 

Chateau Lynch Bages, Bordeaux

Although evidence of the Bages terroir exists as far back as the 16th century, the history of winemaking in the area really began in the 18th century. From 1749 to 1824, the vineyard was owned by Thomas Lynch, the son of an Irishman from Galway who worked as a merchant in Bordeaux. Thomas Lynch managed the land wisely and produced high quality wines under the name "Cru de Lynch". In the context of the prestigious Classification of 1855, for the Exposition Universelle de Paris, his wine would soon be classified as one of the fifth growths. Back then the grapes were transported on a horse-drawn cart and then lifted with a crane and emptied into a wooden tank on wheels and tracks. One or two winemakers inside the tank pressed the grapes, making the juice flow out through the openings of the vats. These extraordinary winemakers had a tough and rather dangerous job. The last of them was the exemplary Xavier Tibur, who ended his career at Lynch-Bages in 1975. The old vat of Lynch-Bages is open for visits and will transport you to another era, but perhaps never as drink one of their bottles in front of a plate of grilled meat!