Leonardo and his passion for wine in Luca Maroni’s new book

So much so as to define him as a winemaker. The author, a Leonardo scholar to whom we owe the replanting of the original vine from Leonardo’s vineyard in Milan, presents us with the great Renaissance Genius in an unusual guise: that of winemaker and wine lover. The book tells the story of the important relationship that binds Leonardo da Vinci to wine. Born into a family of wine producers and owners of numerous vineyards in Vinci, Leonardo became passionate from the outset about grape cultivation and its transformation, to the point of becoming, as the author himself defines him, “the first agronomist, oenologist and sommelier in history”. Wine purchases were regularly noted by Leonardo in his shopping list, sometimes alongside a drawing of unsurpassed beauty or next to an important scientific demonstration. We know from Leonardo himself that he loved to drink a glass of wine every day, with every meal, and with conscious moderation. In the book each of the fundamental aspects of the relationship between Leonardo and wine is investigated and described with philological citations of Leonardo’s own words, with images of his notes and related drawings from his original manuscripts. There emerges a Leonardo curious about everything and with an inexhaustible desire to find an explanation for each thing. But there also emerge the more human and intimate sides of the figure: his daily habits, his childhood in Vinci, his agricultural soul. A fresh portrait of a fascinating personality, extraordinarily engaging for its contemporary relevance. The publication of Leonardo da Vinci and Wine, published by Sens, is scheduled for 14 February 2019 on the occasion of a presentation with the author at the I Migliori Vini Italiani event.