ROMORANTIN

Romorantin white wine: a unique grape involving a King, his Mother and Leonardo da Vinci

The emblematic Francis of Orléans became King of France at the age of 20 in 1515. Unusually tall and with striking athletic looks, Francis turned out not just a fervent warrior but also a lover of the arts. A contemporary of other Royal celebrities such as Emperor Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire and King Henry VIII of England, Francis was as famous for changing his political alliances – with varying success – as he was for being the ultimate Renaissance man combining his physical strength with sharp intelligence, intellectual curiosity, a humanistic worldview and enthusiastic patronage of literature and the arts – with architecture very much included. And of course, he enjoyed a lavish lifestyle topped off with the best wines.

Among Francis’ many contacts throughout Europe, his friendship with Italian Renaissance star Leonardo da Vinci surely stands out. Leonardo was an old man by then and Francis affectionately called him “my father” while inviting him to come and live very close to the Royal residence in France. The King entrusted Leonardo with many tasks such as organizing court celebrations, creating costumes and performing research. When moving to France in 1516, Leonardo brought along a number of his most famous paintings including the Mona Lisa, which remained in the Royal collection and today represents the single biggest tourist attraction in the Louvre museum of Paris.

All of this had a lot to do with Francis’ Italian mother, Princess Louise of Savoy. After her French husband died young, Louise made certain that her children were raised in the spirit of the Italian Renaissance. In turn, Francis later on put great trust in his mother and made her several times his regent while he was on military campaign in Italy.

In honour of his beloved mother, Francis ordered the construction of a castle – to be designed and built by Leonardo da Vinci. While works were in progress, Francis asked for at least 60,000 vines to be uprooted and moved from Burgundy and replanted in the area around Romorantin in north-western France, where the castle was to be erected. As a boy, Francis had spent time in Romorantin with his mother and sister and his wife Princess Claude of France, whose father was King before Francis, was actually born there. When Leonardo suddenly passed away in 1519, however, the project was abandoned and Francis decided to build another palace in the same area: the famous Castle of Chambord, which in the 20th century served as a major inspiration for the prince’s castle in the Walt Disney movie The Beauty & The Beast. Whether Leonardo secretly designed Chambord before his demise, remains a question unanswered.

But while the first castle was left unfinished, the especially planted grapes stayed – carrying the name of Romorantin. It once was a popular grape and widely grown in the Loire region in the northern stretch of which Romorantin is located. In the 21st century, however, the Romorantin grape has retreated to just one small sub-region under the controlled designation of origin Cour-Cheverny AOC. There is literally nowhere else in the world today where the Romorantin grape is cultivated than at Cour-Cheverny. In other words: Cour-Cheverny is the only brand on the entire planet offering white wines produced 100% out of this unique Royal favourite, a near-extinct grape that nevertheless links through its exceptional heritage Francis I of France and Leonardo da Vinci: one of the most influential Kings of France with one of the most influential artists ever.