By Patrick Hunt – Everyone knows Veuve Cliquot Champagne – now in the prestigious LVMH Group – and most know the story of Nicole Barbe Ponsardin, daughter of Baron Nicholas Ponsardin, who founded this grand maison champagne in the 19th century as both a visionary pioneer who helped put champagne […]
Author: patrick
Michael Anderson’s 2nd Excellent Book: Tribalism will Divide and Conquer Us
P. F. Sommerfeldt – Julius Caesar knew that to destroy the fractured Gauls, his overarching task was to accentuate their tribalism, not their national unity, in order to divide and conquer. History repeats this time and again as Michael Anderson cogently writes on tribalism, the bane of 21st century America. […]
The Greek Charge at Marathon: Ready, Set, Go?
By Adrian Arima and Jeff Richardson – The battle at Marathon between the Greeks and Persians was one of the most pivotal battles in history, basically enabling the continued birth and evolution of Western civilization. The Greek charge took the Persians by surprise, and, whether or not they outnumbered the […]
Lake Como: Sorsasso Domasino Wines in Domaso
This lake exceeds anything I ever beheld in beauty. Shelley “When you write the story of two happy lovers, let the story be set on the banks of Lake Como.” Franz Liszt By Patrick Hunt – For millennia Lake Como in the foothills of the Italian Alps has offered so […]
Aeschylus Speaks To Me
By Walter Borden, MD – Aeschylus speaks to me. Born in Eleusis, a village just north of Athens and the haunting grounds of the goddess Demeter, said to be the goddess of fertility and the harvest. To Aeschylus that was just a myth that masked her true identity– the goddess […]
Dogs through the Ages – a History of Canine Material Culture
By Andrea M. Gáldy – Whether one likes dogs or not, the current exhibition Treue Freunde: Menschen und Hunde (“True Friends: Humans and Dogs”) at the Bayerische Nationalmuseum in Munich is a must-see. It charts the cultural history of the relationship between humans and dogs back to the earliest times when tame […]
Umbria: culture of wine in Torgiano
by Patrizia Passerini – A green heart in the centre of the peninsula, like a treasure chest protected by valleys and hills that follow one another across long distances. Umbria is an Italian region that welcomes visitors with its beauty, rich landscapes and an ancient and amzing history. Once you […]
The Creative Hub: Antwerp and the Arts
By Andrea M. Gáldy – At the moment several exhibitions explore the many ways, in which the art and artists of the North influenced the production and style of particular works and collections as well as the direction of patronage. While the Duchy of Burgundy had played a major role in […]
Roero Piedmont: History, Legends and Ancient Viticulture
By Patrizia Passerini – A land surrounded by woods and hills, composed of vineyards and lush fruit trees, overlooked by beautiful and imposing castles, embellished by ancient churches. It’s Roero, in the heart of the Piedmont wine region, in northern Italy. Roero is situated between Langhe and Monferrato, in the […]
The Lanzi: Bodyguards in Sixteenth-Century Florence
By Andrea Gáldy – In sixteenth-century Florence, Duke Cosimo I de’ Medici succeeded his murdered predecessor Alessandro in 1537 and, even though the murderer was a close relative, knew very well what he needed to do to stay alive and in office. He had inherited a guard staffed by Italians […]