Knights of Wine from Romania at the swearing-in ceremony of the new members of the Pontifical Swiss Guard

For more than two millennia, Wine has been a symbol of sacrifice in the name of faith! Recently, the Romanian Knights of the Wine have reiterated this sacred idea in an original way. Every year on May 6 (which recalls the armed confrontation of May 6, 1527 during the sack of Rome – the so-called “Sacco di Roma” – by the troops of the contested Duke of Bourbon, when 147 out of 189 members of the Swiss Guard sacrificed their lives to save Pope Clement VII), the Ceremony of the swearing in of the new members of the Pontifical Swiss Guard takes place. Evoking the sacrifice of the guards in 1527, on May 6, 2023, through the partnership between Ordo Equestris Vini Europe (OEVE) and the Vatican City, with the coordination of the Romanian Consulate of the OEVE, the project was carried out through which Podgoria Silvania produced a limited edition of 220 bottles of “private label” brut brut natural sparkling wine, which it offered to the members of the Swiss Guard as a sign of gratitude and appreciation of the noble mission undertaken. A delegation of the Romanian Senate and Consulate of the OEVE had the honor to attend the event, which included:

the symbolic ceremony of handing over the bottles of sparkling wine to the Commander of the Swiss Guard, Colonel Christoph Graf, by the Proconsul of the Romanian Consulate of the EEVE, Eques Ornatus Marius Farmazon and the Administrator of the Podgoriei Silvania, R.H. Delian Dregan, in the presence of the Ambassador of the EEVE Josef Jenei and Pastor Ernst Heller;
the swearing-in ceremony of the new members of the Pontifical Swiss Guard, held in the San Damaso Courtyard of the Apostolic Palace;
the reception offered by the Swiss Guard in honor of the guests;
attending Sunday Mass and a private visit to Vatican City;

The event was a unique experience, as unique as it was unique, as significant from a historical and cultural perspective, and the association of the image of Podgoriei Silvania with the Holy See was certainly the fulfillment of the task undertaken by the Romanian Consulate of the Order of the Knights of the Wine, namely the promotion of Romanian wineries and wines.