The Roman Connection That Became the French Connection.....That Became the Wine Connection

So, why Madonna for our name...............that is something we hear a 1000 times over....or the question is, "Is this Madonna's Winery?" When Madonna married Sean Penn in 1985, her attorney contacted us to see if we were trying to trademark on her name. We politely informed him that there was another Madonna that had been around for many more years prior to his Madonna...and that we have been using the name since 1922. Madonna does, however, own U.S. trademark registrations for the name Madonna for entertainment services and related goods and has been using the name “Madonna” since 1979.

Grandpa Bartolucci was an Italian and a religious man. That is what inspired him to name his new winery in America...... Madonna Estate. This name would seem to be the perfect connection between the higher power and the grape. He might even have been hoping for an added blessing for the grapes, and wine he would craft in the years to come.

The image of Madonna and Child appeared early in paintings in the Roman catacombs.

The theme is among the most ancient and widespread in Christian iconography, and has the greatest number of variations because--beyond its symbolic religious meanings--it allows one to analyze the relationship between mother and child in its many aspects.........and in our case the relationship between the Madonna, grapes and wine.

This painting above, hanging in the Louvre, is The Virgin of the Grapes, painted in the 1640's by French painter, Pierre Mignard. He reproduced the features of his wife in the painting. So besides Grandpa Bartolucci it seems others made some sort of the same connection between Madonna, grapes and wine. What works of art inspire you?

In the Beginning..........

In the beginning, 1922 to be exact.......there was Andrea Bartolucci, who braved the voyage from Italy to come to America....and now, four generations later there is a third generation Andrea Bartolucci who braves the perils, of Duhig Road in Carneros Napa Valley, as he travels daily from Madonna Vineyard to Madonna Estate surveying his kingdom and everything in between.This blog has been created for the benefit of all of you who are wine lovers. We welcome this opportunity to learn more about you, whether you are a wine club member, a devoted fan, or someone who has just discovered us. We hope that this blog will become an interactive tool for all of us to communicate our thoughts, ideas, observations, and feelings about anything related to wine and beyond.

We welcome you to become more personally acquainted with us too. We will try our hardest to keep the dialog updated. We will pass along information about Madonna Estate, from its wines, to all about the family, and extended wine family. We will also write about the vineyard, and the winery. We are really excited about this opportunity to interact with all of you. There are so many possibilties for great communication, and hopefully some fun too!

So, lets begin.................The picture above looks like the perfect spot to enjoy a glass of Madonna Estate wine. However, in an effort to find out a little more about you........please email us a picture and a location comment so, that we may post it on the new blog.................................................. email sbartolucci@madonnaestate.com ....... let us know where your favorite spot is to enjoy wine.......hopefully our Madonna Estate wine! Please feel free to also add comments to our blog comment page. The deleted 1st comment noted on the page was a test comment from us.

Be one of the first to grace our new comment page. We are waiting to hear from you. This is your chance to receive personalized information directly from us. Hopefully, we will be able to answer some of your questions, even before you have a chance to ask them. If you would like to visit our website, please go to http://www.madonnaestate.com/ .

Sue Bartolucci