Vinsanto The wine of friendship
Vinsanto has legendary origins that date back to the beginning of Christianity describing an especially pure wine suitable for the consecration in the Holly Mass ritual. It is said that during the Council of Florence commissioned by Pope Eugenio I in 1439 in order to discuss the unity of the Western Church with the Eastern one, among the seven hundred Greek high priests present there was also humanist Cardinal Bessarion, who, during a banquet, after tasting a sweet, amber colored wine, enthusiastically exclaimed: “this is the wine of Xantos” (referring to the Greek island where the wine was produced from dried grapes). The guests and butlers interpreted his statement “Sanctus” as a compliment for the excellency of their Tuscan wine.
