by Elena Di Bacco
Wine is the protagonist in the works of the great Italian authors, from Alessandro Manzoni to Gabriele d’Annunzio
Wine, loved and celebrated all over the world, has always been a cultural symbol in Italy as well.
In ancient times it was considered an emblem of the philosophy of measure, because it exalted the dualism between good and evil better than anything else.
Because of its unique ability to embody the contradictions of life, it has often been used in literature to describe social contexts, psychological insights and the nature of human relationships.
In “ La Loc Bandiera ” (1752), Goldoni associates the wines with the men who go around the innkeeper Mirandolina.
The haughty and snobbish Cavaliere is compared to a robust Burgundy , while the penniless Marquis is associated with the modest Cyprus wine , the illustrious Conte alla Malvasia . And the seductive Mirandolina, the protagonist of the opera? She represents the wine in its essence, and expresses all its captivating capacity, in fact she toasts, welcoming all men to herself.
In the Promessi Sposi, Manzoni makes the personal relationship with wine a fundamental characterizing trait of his characters. The fearful Don Abbondio, after meeting with the good ones, seeks only “his” wine to appease his anxiety, and Perpetua, a spiteful and maternal housekeeper, exchanges his confidences in exchange for the coveted goblet. And what about the young Renzo, a good boy with a troubled soul who takes refuge in the chalice to face the difficulties that Fate puts in front of him? Wine defines and regulates all human relationships in the novel, it is a kind of emotional balance. Each one finds in his flowing comfort to his pains and, often, to his sins.
And if Manzoni loved wine so much that he had a glass made twice as big, so as not to feel accused of raising his elbow too much, Giacomo Leopardi , the greatest Italian poet, even without experimenting with these excesses, was a passionate advocate of the power of Bacchus.
In fact, according to the poet, wine strengthens thought, improves action and reflection, makes man capable of seeing things that when sober he does not see, nuances that he would not have grasped, truth that he had not understood. Furthermore, wine helps with women, making the less daring suitor brave, and giving him the secret of reciprocated love, which the poet himself had chased so much in his life.
Giovanni Pascoli , as a good Romagna, was also a great lover of wine. Indeed he drank so much that it is said he abused it, which is why in his works there is never an explicit mention of the drink, a source of shame and vice for the poet, but we talk a lot about lives, through which the poet also expresses the consequences of consuming the wine itself. The vine thus becomes a metaphor for its fruit. In the ” Three clusters “ for example, the progressive effects of alcohol on the psyche are investigated, each corresponding to a cluster. Drinking the first brings a cheerful euphoria, drinking the second a consoling oblivion and, drinking the third, a sleep that is only apparently soothing to a pain, which instead always remains crouched in the depths of the soul.
Even Giosuè Carducci was not insensitive to the calls of good wine, but his was a more genuine, enjoyable relationship, far from the excesses and torments of Pascoli. Carducci loved big tables, friends, good food… and he stuffed a lot of his poetry with them. He really liked Barbera , which he had made the protagonist of some of his verses: “Generosa Barbera! Drinking it seems to us to be alone in the sea challenging a storm! ” to underline its strong and adventurous character. In short, his was a happier drink, an experience that removed the torments and became pure passion.
The great singer of pleasure Gabriele D’Annunzio on the contrary, to our great surprise, was almost a teetotaler, even though he could describe wine very well, especially in its amorous declination. For this reason, despite making use of it sparingly, it had a well-stocked cellar, with which it seduced its many guests.
Cesare Pavese instead takes us back to a more rural, natural dimension, immersed in the enchanting scenery of the Langhe, land of the great Piedmontese wines such as Moscato , Nebbiolo or Barbera .
Here the wine is represented in its primeval state, the vineyard, and above all tells of the fatigue of working in the fields and of the ways to overcome it through socializing, which was expressed in songs to celebrate the harvest. More than the wine itself, the protagonist of Pavese’s works is the rhythm of nature. Wine is no longer a symbol, but a natural element that expresses the beauty of the earth and the dignity of working in the fields.
We are approaching the disenchanted materialism of Giovanni Verga , who described in his works the humblest states of society, occupied by fishermen, shepherds and peasants. In this context, wine is an integral part of the small but necessary patrimony of the poor, indeed it becomes a symbol of everything that, otherwise, could not be afforded.
A thousand other works and a thousand other authors, up to the present day and beyond, we could cite as proof of the seductive charm of wine for Italian poets, a wine to be consumed but above all to be narrated. Because wine, in Italy, is definitely much more than a drink. Wine is culture, tradition, social symbol which, in its sacred flow, perfectly represents the purest essence of our land, and at the same time, the most sincere examination of the changing and contradictory human nature.
